Toronto Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic pointed directly to execution issues after a 126-113 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference first-round series on Saturday at Rocket Arena.
“Our biggest problem was our eighteen turnovers,” Rajakovic said. “We did not do a good job of taking care of the ball. We had a lot of situations that we were just careless with the ball.”
He emphasized how possession control dictated the flow of the game. “We got to do a much better job of controlling that part,” he added.
Rajakovic also highlighted Cleveland’s control of second-chance opportunities. “Second half they got seven offensive rebounds. So they won that possession battle.”
Transition defense was another concern for Toronto, which struggled to generate pace throughout the night. “We did not look for kick aheads. We did not look for opportunities to run,” he said.
“Several situations when they scored we were just looking at what happened instead of moving on to the next play,” Rajakovic continued. “We got to do a much better job there.”
The Raptors entered halftime down only seven points, but the game shifted early in the third quarter. Cleveland built a decisive run as Toronto’s offense stalled and turnovers increased.
“We were thinking of what we can do better,” Rajakovic said about the halftime message. “Unfortunately we had a very bad start of that third quarter with turning the ball over.”
He pointed to execution rather than effort as the main issue. “We did not do a good job of running with pace,” he said. “Everything for us starts on the defensive end and if you allow our opponent to score 126 points that’s going to be really hard for us to beat him.”
Rajakovic also addressed Brandon Ingram’s limited shot volume and Cleveland’s defensive approach. “No, I’m not satisfied with that at all,” he said. “We got to do a better job of executing, freeing him up.”
“We were way too stagnant offensively tonight,” he added.
Toronto’s offensive flow was further disrupted by the absence of Immanuel Quickley. “We miss Quickley big time,” Rajakovic said. “He is doing a really good job of getting us organized.”
He also evaluated Scottie Barnes’ role adjustments due to foul trouble and matchup changes. “We’ll watch film, we’ll get better through it and get better,” he said.
On the defensive plan against Cleveland’s frontcourt depth, Rajakovic noted flexibility will be required. “Mobley ended the game with seventeen points… this is a deep team,” he said. “We got to really pick how we want to match up.”
Despite the loss, Rajakovic stressed the importance of adjustments moving forward. “We got to learn throughout this process and minimize the number of mistakes and play to our strengths.”
Game 2 will require a cleaner offensive structure and improved ball security if Toronto wants to even the series.