Finding Perfect Rotation for the Toronto Raptors

With the kind of early-season success his Toronto Raptors are having, the last thing head coach Dwane Casey needs to worry about is a rotation that doesn't appear to need any major adjustments. 

A franchise-best 7-1 start is enough of an indication that the coaching staff knows how to allocate minutes to one of the deepest rosters in basketball. 

While Casey is satisfied with the progress being made, he knows his team is not a finished product, per Holly MacKenzie of Raptors.com:

“We're still working on a lot of stuff, trying to find out who we are, trying to get our identity. The No. 1 thing is consistency.”

During a recent appearance on The Bryan Hayes Show on TSN 1050 in Toronto, Raptors reporter Josh Lewenberg said this team is the deepest he's seen in the 20-year history of the franchise. 

It's hard to dispute that. The amount of viable options Casey has at his disposal is mesmerizing. His ability to find playing time for all of his key guys is a testament to his coaching prowess. 

Whether this good fortune can be sustained remains to be seen. They have yet to face any prolonged adversity, so it will be interesting to see how this group fares when winning games becomes harder to do. 

Ideal Starting Lineup

Dave Sandford/Getty Images

You can never underestimate the importance of continuity. Having a foundation in place that stays together and (hopefully) wins together is how dynasties are bred. 

It's one of the main reasons why Lowry elected to re-sign over the offseason, per Sean Deveney of SportingNews.com:

"

Of course, I looked at other places, but at the end of the day, I started something in Toronto and I wanted to finish it in Toronto. I wanted to be a part of it, I wanted to be a part of this organization and franchise. It comes with the continuity of the team, the ownership, management, coaches. Everything blends in together and you want to be part of an up-and-coming organization.

"

That continuity is apparent in the starting lineup with all five starters from 2013-14 returning. History suggests that teams maintaining that kind of cohesion are more likely to make a jump after falling short in the playoffs.

Per Dan Feldman of NBCSports.com:

"

In the previous five years, four teams returned five players who started at least 60 games from a team that lost in the first round. All four – the 2011-12 Spurs, 2011-12 76ers, 2010-11 Thunder and 2009-10 Spurs – advanced in the playoffs.

"

That's a good omen for a franchise without a postseason series victory since 2000-01.

Name	Points	Rebounds	Assists	USG%
Kyle Lowry	18.0	4.6	5.8	22.1
DeMar DeRozan	21.9	4.8	2.6	30.0
Terrence Ross	11.5	3.3	1.0	18.2
Amir Johnson	10.6	5.4	1.2	16.8
Jonas Valanciunas	10.3	7.1	0.7	20.0

This combination is outscoring opponents 194-158, per NBA.com. It's also proving to be a force on defense, holding the opposition to just 39.6 percent shooting.

Amir Johnson's nagging ankles have forced the 10-year veteran to the sidelines for three games, which is nearly as many as he missed all of last year (five).

When Patterson enters the lineup as his replacement, things tend to go downhill. 

Lineup	OffRtg	DefRtg	NetRtg	+/-
With Johnson	116.1	93.4	22.7	7.2
With Patterson	115.0	138.1	-23.1	-3.0

It should come as no surprise that defense is the area most affected when Johnson is out. His defensive rating of 95.7 is the highest of any starter, while Patterson's (104.3) ranks near the bottom. 

While a lineup with Patterson is seen as a liability defensively, the team remains near the top in points allowed at 96.4 (ninth). It's used sparingly enough (7.2 minutes) to where it doesn't harm the numbers.

Regardless of who's manning the 4 spot, the starters continue to come out of the gates slow in first quarters. Opponents average 26.2 points (25th) on 51.7 percent shooting (29th) in the opening 12 minutes. 

It could simply be a lack of urgency on the players' part, however, those kind of lulls can put the team in holes that may soon be too much to overcome. 

Bench Attack

The second unit, which was considered a weakness last season after averaging the fourth-fewest points (26.1, per Hoopsstats.com) in the NBA, has stepped up in a major way. The additions of Lou Williams (10.9 points) and James Johnson (6.9 points and 3.6 rebounds) are a huge reason why it now ranks fifth in points (36.0, after seven games) and eighth in efficiency (40.0).

While several members of the bench have experience as starters earlier in their careers, the players understand their roles and why it's important to remain sharp. 

As backup guard Greivis Vasquez tells Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun:

"

The second unit can easily play starters minutes but it’s not about that as of right now. It’s about helping our team win games and we do it well as a team and we’ve got to keep it that way. It’s going to be a big plus for us because any given night it could be anybody’s night. It also helps us, the guys coming off the bench because we have to come focused. We don’t know how many minutes we’re going to play so we have to be efficient and we have to do our job when we’re out there.

"

The five-man "bench mob" of Williams, Johnson, Vasquez, Patrick Patterson and Tyler Hansbrough all average at least 18 minutes. The starters get more of a chance to rest because the depth behind them is as strong as it is. 

Name	Minutes	Points	Rebounds	Assists	USG%
Greivis Vasquez	19.6	8.3	2.4	2.5	25.0
Lou Williams	18.2	10.9	1.0	0.8	26.8
James Johnson	19.5	6.9	3.6	2.0	16.5
Patrick Patterson	25.4	7.6	4.5	1.6	11.9
Tyler Hansbrough	20.5	4.6	4.5	0.5	8.9

Both DeMar DeRozan (38.2 minutes to 33.8) and Kyle Lowry (36.2 to 33.1) are playing less because of that. The burden to stay on the floor is diminishing as their backups continue to excel. 

Remaining Pieces

Rich Pedroncelli/Associated Press

With the rotation locked in at 10 players, Chuck Hayes now finds himself on the outside looking in. 

The 31-year-old center averaged 2.2 points and 3.6 rebounds in 12.8 minutes last year, making sporadic appearances as a defensive presence in the paint. 

The emergence of Hansbrough has eliminated Hayes from the equation. The only floor time he's seen has come as a result of Johnson's injury. 

Greg Stiemsma was signed over Jordan Hamilton and Will Cherry because of the Raptors' lack of size behind Valanciunas. Hayes is only 6'6". With a 6'11" Stiemsma, Casey could at least roll with someone tall enough to fend off larger bigs. 

While he's looked impressive in limited minutes (3.3 points and 1.3 rebounds in three games), he too is a victim of Hansbrough's improved play. 

The North Carolina alumnus is an energy guy who plays a physical brand of basketball, creating hard fouls and banging down for offensive rebounds (1.9, second on Raptors). 

Casey has taken notice of how Hansbrough is making smarter decisions away from the basketball, per Rachel Brady of the Globe and Mail:

"

He knows the spots to go to now that the ball will find him, and he has accepted that instead of ball-hunting, he’s learning now that if he sets a good screen, he’s going to be open; and if he gets to the dunker spot, he’s going to be open. There are lots of focus things he is doing right now that are very noticeable to the coaching staff.

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Barring any further frontcourt injuries, Hayes and Stiemsma will continue to ride the pine.

As Landry Fields' wrist and elbow fail to improve, so too does his chance of ever cracking the rotation again. Like a true professional, he knows he needs to be ready for when his number is called, per Stephen Brotherston of Pro Bball Report: 

"

You never know who is going to get into foul trouble and you never know who will go down with injury, so you always have to be ready even if you think you are going to play or you’re not. You never know what is going to happen out there. You don’t want to be caught off guard.

Whether you like it or not, you have to maintain your professionalism because whether you are playing or not, the guys upstairs are still paying you and still expecting stuff out of you. You still have something to contribute to the team.

"

The popular Brazilian tandem of rookie Bruno Caboclo and Lucas "Bebe" Nogueira are merely projects. There's a very good chance that neither player gets off the bench, but that's alright. 

That's nothing new to Nogueira, who sat a lot while competing overseas, per Eric Koreen of the National Post:

"

I’m OK because I’ve played six years professionally. The first three years [in Spain], I didn’t play. I stayed on the bench the whole year. Sometimes, [when] the [starting centre] got hurt, coach put the shooting guard in the post, but don’t [play] me. I’m OK if I don’t play 82 games.

"

Their immediate goals should be to get stronger, to learn as much as they can from veterans and to work closely with the coaching staff to build their basketball repertoires. Chances are they'll wind up in the NBA D-League in the coming months as part of their training. 

Christopher Walder is considered by many to be the "songbird of his generation" and the greatest center to have never played professional, collegiate, high school, house league or pickup basketball. His work has been published on Bleacher Report, SB Nation, Sports Illustrated, FanSided and several other online outlets. You may follow him on Twitter at @WalderSports.

All statistics, unless otherwise noted, are courtesy of NBA.com/stats and Basketball-Reference.com