Nick Nurse Laughs at Tanking Question, but Raptors' Focus Should be on the Future

Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse doesn't like to use the word tanking, but the organization's focus should shift to the future these days

Aaron Rose | Apr 5, 2021

Mary Holt-USA TODAY Sports

Tanking? We're talking about tanking?

It was a fair question that was asked of Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse on Sunday afternoon when the T-word was first mentioned in a media availability. At this point in the season, the Raptors are 19-30 and are about as close to a top-three spot in the lottery as they are to the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.

The T-word has been thrown around the Raptors fanbase for months now and has gained plenty of support over the past month as the Raptors mustered just one win in March. But, as far as Nurse is concerned, tanking is not an option.

"I don't like it," Nurse said as he scoffed at just the mention of the word. "I don't like talking about it, I don't like thinking about it, and I don't like that it goes on."

Again, it was a fair question. Not just because of the team's record, but because the 2021 NBA Draft class is widely considered one of the best in years and because if you look at Toronto's roster you might raise an eyebrow.

For one, why was Norman Powell traded? The answer there is relatively obvious. Toronto wanted to save some money and get a little younger, so they moved the soon-to-be very expensive free agent for a hopefully less expensive, younger soon-to-be restricted free agent in Gary Trent Jr. So in a down year they shipped the 27-year-old out to Portland at the trade deadline.

It's when you get a little bit more into the nitty-gritty that the tougher questions are asked. Why, for example, has Aron Baynes averaged 14 minutes per game since the Raptors major COVID-19 problems resolved themselves? Maybe more to the point, why hasn't — or didn't — the Raptors front office make any moves to shore up the backcourt situation when it clearly presented itself as a problem months ago?

Right now the Raptors seem a little caught in between. Nurse and the players are never going to lose games intentionally, but looking at the roster it's fair to say the team hasn't been given the best chance to succeed this season.

The Raptors are, as Nurse said, playing to win.

"We're still playing to win and we're still playing to make the playoffs." - Nick Nurse
— 𝐀𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐧 𝐑𝐨𝐬𝐞 (@AaronBenRose) April 4, 2021

"We're still playing to make the playoffs and we're still playing to get better," he said Sunday.

But it's the second part of that equation that should get a little more focus these days. The team is already expecting to be without Kyle Lowry for at least a few more games and Fred VanVleet is battling a left hip contusion and, having played almost 40 minutes in six of the team's last nine games, he could probably use a little bit of a break. Nurse already said his plan is to start Malachi Flynn if the pair can't go and, frankly, that might not be such a bad idea after all.

It's time to start shifting gears a little bit. It's clear who Baynes and Stanley Johnson are. They are not part of the Raptors future going forward. Tanking might be too strong a word to use, but the final 23 games should be more about figuring out who else should be on this team going forward and what roles they should play. That means getting OG Anunoby the ball in spots he's not used to (they've been doing this), seeing what Gary Trent Jr. can provide (they've been doing this), and seeing more of what the younger bench players have to offer (they've only done this in blowouts).

Don't worry about trying to eke out enough wins for a play-in spot and an eventual first-round loss to the Brooklyn Nets or Philadelphia 76ers. It's more important to plan for the future these days and if it means more ping pong balls in the lottery machine, so be it.

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