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TORONTO - It is the vicious circle every non-contending team finds itself in.
You have to be good to get the calls, but in order to get good you need a few calls.
Right now the Raps aren’t getting any calls and hit a new low last night getting to the free throw line just 12 times.
Not that there weren’t plenty of opportunities.
DeMar DeRozan, a guy who with more time in the league will begin to get calls, had more than a handful of times he could have got a call but didn’t.
The Raptors also desperately wanted a call on Jose Calderon’s last second drive to the basket where Al Horford appeared to bump the Raptors point guard as he lost the ball out of bounds on the way to the basket.
Not only did they not get the call, the review to determine possession, which looked like it would go in Toronto’s favour, went against them as well.
Complaining about the referees in a public forum is a no-win situation for any player or team official, but if the references are veiled enough, you can get away with the odd dig without getting fined.
Triano made just such a reference when he was asked about the decision to put the ball in Calderon’s hands on the Raptors last legitimate chance to regain the lead.
“We knew they were going to switch and with a big (Horford) on him we might have had a call coming,” Triano said. “We knew there would be a big on him and you use your quickness to get by him. We shot 12 free throws to that point. We thought we might have a call coming.”
Turns out they didn’t. Nor have they for a good portion of this season, but that is the life for a team that is struggling just to get to eighth place.
mike.ganter@sunmedia.ca
