TORONTO – It’s finally time for the Toronto Raptors to rest.
Head coach Darko Rajakovic told his players to rest as much as they can before their next practice on Friday after playing in seven games over 11 days where Toronto went 1-6. The last loss might be the most painful as Jalen Brunson had 35 points as the New York Knicks routed the undermanned Raptors 117-101 on Tuesday in an Emirates NBA Cup quarterfinal.
“Really important just to reset the mind, reset the body,” said Brandon Ingram, who led Toronto with 31 points against New York, including 17 in the first quarter.
“Look at these first 25, 26 games and see what we’ve done well, what we haven’t done so well, and just try to adjust and address it and try to be better at it.”
The Raptors’ next game will be against the Miami Heat on Monday, giving them a full five days off after that hectic 11-day stretch.
Rest will also be critical for point guard Immanuel Quickley and swingman RJ Barrett of Mississauga, Ont.
Get daily National news
Get the day’s top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.
Both starters missed the Raptors’ first-ever knockout game of the NBA Cup. Quickley was out with an undisclosed illness and Barrett continues to recover from a sprained right knee.
“Seven game in 11 days. We definitely need it. We need to get healthy,” said point guard Jamal Shead after a career-high 18 points starting in place of Quickley. “RJ, Quick, just our entire team, we just need our bodies to get right.”
Ingram also had seven assists and six rebounds as Toronto (15-11) dropped its fourth game in a row. Scottie Barnes added 13 points, five rebounds and four assists.
Shead, who had been listed as questionable with a right quad contusion, had eight assists and three rebounds. Ochai Agbaji had three points in place of Barrett.
Toronto’s lack of depth was exposed by the Knicks’ defence, with several Raptors bench players left scoreless.
Rajakovic has said throughout the season that every loss is an opportunity to learn. He, Ingram and Shead all seemed to take the NBA Cup quarterfinal loss in stride when speaking with media post-game.
“It is hard (for young players to take on new roles) but that’s the job, you know,” said Rajakovic. “I think it’s a great learning opportunity for all of them.
“I thought that our spirit was great. I thought that we competed the whole game. We just played against a better team tonight.”
Ingram echoed Rajakovic’s sentiments, but looked at the season as a whole.
“One big lesson that I take away from the course of the season is we have little margin for error, especially when we have guys in and out of the lineup,” he said. “We’ve had (Jakob Poeltl) out of the lineup. We’ve had RJ out of the lineup. We had Quick out of the lineup today.
“So as guys come in and step up, we have just a little margin for error in games especially when we play really, really good teams.”
Karl-Anthony Towns, who was a game-time decision, had a double-double with 14 points and 16 rebounds as New York (17-7) won its fourth straight.
New York advances to Las Vegas where it will face the Orlando Magic on Saturday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 10, 2025.
© 2025 The Canadian Press