Nuggets at Raptors
Kyle Lowry's struggle to find his shot in the playoffs last spring was one of the things that held the Toronto Raptors back, and the star point guard is again having some trouble finding his form. Lowry will try to turn in a more efficient offensive performance when the Raptors host the Denver Nuggets on Monday.
Lowry shot 32.1 percent from the floor in his final 10 regular season games in 2015-16 and 39.7 percent in the playoffs during Toronto's run to the Eastern Conference finals, and that shooting slump is continuing with an 8-of-29 effort in the first two games this season. Lowry compounded his shooting troubles with four assists and six turnovers on Friday as the Raptors lost 94-91 at home to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Nuggets can relate to missed shots after Wilson Chandler had a chance to put the team ahead at the free-throw line in the closing seconds of the fourth quarter on Saturday only to miss a pair, sending the game into overtime and an eventual 115-113 home loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. Denver shot 38 percent from the field in the loss, including 6-of-23 from 3-point range, and is 14-of-47 from beyond the arc through the first two games.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, Altitude (Denver), Sportsnet One (Toronto)
ABOUT THE NUGGETS (1-1): Denver is struggling from beyond the arc but is also having some trouble on the defensive end after allowing New Orleans star Anthony Davis to go off for 50 points in a 107-102 win in the opener and then watching the Portland guard combination of Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum combine for 60 points on Saturday. The bright spot is the young frontcourt pairing of 22-year-old Jusuf Nurkic and 21-year-old Nikola Jokic. Nurkic took the lead with 23 points and nine rebounds in the opener and Jokic stepped up to deliver 23 points and 17 boards on Saturday.
ABOUT THE RAPTORS (1-1): DeMar DeRozan was often the one picking up the slack for Lowry late last season and is continuing to do so in 2016-17 with 72 points in the first two games - the most through two games in franchise history. DeRozan and his teammates were encouraged by the performance on Friday of rookies Jakob Poeltl and Pascal Siakam, who combined for 11 points on 5-of-9 shooting and 10 rebounds. "Give the coaching staff a lot of credit for working with them all summer, getting them prepared for situations like this, being able to play early in the season," DeRozan told the Toronto Star of the rookies. "That’s big, being able to gain that experience throughout the whole season and not just when it’s a blowout or we’re losing and they come in for a (couple) minutes."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Nuggets G Gary Harris (groin) sat out the first two games and is questionable for Monday.
2. Raptors F Patrick Paterson is 3-of-11 from the field in the first two games, including 1-of-7 from beyond the arc.
3. Denver took both meetings last season, earning a 106-105 win in its trip to Toronto on Dec. 3.