Toronto Raptors: Injuries to Norman Powell, Marc Gasol paves tough road
While the Toronto Raptors continue to string together wins, losing Marc Gasol and Norman Powell to injuries could prove to be costly moving forward.
Once again the Toronto Raptors beat a team below .500 but this was not without sacrifice as Norman Powell and Marc Gasol left their win over the Detroit Pistons with injuries.
After stumbling in a stretch of games against the Miami Heat, Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto will be going up against the Dallas Mavericks (minus Luka Doncic), Indiana Pacers, and back-to-back games against the Boston Celtics. If the injury news isn’t optimistic, it could prove to be a tough road for the reigning champions.
More from Tip of the Tower
- Cam Phillips making his mark on Toronto Argonauts offence
- Toronto Argonauts: 4 storylines ahead of matchup against Redblacks
- Federico Bernardeschi ready for new challenge with Toronto FC
- Toronto Argonauts overcome Roughriders in entertaining Touchdown Atlantic
- Buffalo Bills: Von Miller drawing inspiration from Bruce Smith
Seeing Dewan Hernandez getting recalled might just be a depth move but considering Gasol’s injury was a hamstring strain, that could prove to be tough to overcome considering how valuable he is to the lineup. Not only does Gasol provide more flexibility as a shooter and defender but his playmaking skills are severely underrated.
Serge Ibaka stepped up his play against the Pistons but he’s struggled since coming back his injury and if he can’t take on the starting role in Gasol’s absence, opposing teams will look to exploit that. Again, there is no telling how long Gasol will be out for but any absence will be tough.
Powell’s injury will have more of an impact if Fred VanVleet remains out because the Raptors don’t have a lot of scoring depth beyond Pascal Siakam and Kyle Lowry. Contending teams have realized that if they shut down Siakam, the Raptors don’t have enough reliable scoring to keep up with other elite lineups.
This is where Powell’s contributions could be missed considering he has been one of their more consistent shooters in VanVleet’s absence and if he reaggravated his should injury, that won’t be a good development over the long run.
Sure the team could always hope that OG Anunoby can continue to make strides but that would be a lot to ask of the 22-year-old. Terence Davis has proven to be a valuable player off the bench but it would be tough to ask him to pick up the slack if Powell has to miss time.
Hopefully, the Raptors get some positive when it comes to their injuries because the road doesn’t get any easier for them as they try to establish their position in the East.
Next. Raptors need to ensure Masai Ujiri’s future. dark
What do you think about the latest Raptors injuries? Will it be tough to overcome or do they have enough depth? Let us know in the comments below.