2009–10 Toronto Raptors season

Roster

• Jay Triano
• Alex English
• Eric Hughes
• Marc Iavaroni
• Micah Nori
• Alvin Williams

Summary

Preseason

The Raptors entered the 2009–10 NBA season in a state of flux: they had failed to qualify for the 2009 NBA Playoffs; it was Jay Triano's first full season in charge; and there was much uncertainty over the futures of perennial All-Star and captain Chris Bosh (who was into the final year of his contract), as well as Shawn Marion and Anthony Parker, both of whom could possibly become free agents before the season began. The roster shakeup began on 9 June 2009, when three-point specialist Jason Kapono ended his two-year tenure with the Raptors, and was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers for the aggressive veteran forward Reggie Evans. Toronto then drafted DeMar DeRozan with the ninth pick, enabling them to fill a spot on the wings. The other major roster change came in the form of signing free agent Hedo Türkoğlu; this led to a sign-and-trade agreement involving four teams, with Toronto landing Devean George (who was later traded for Marco Belinelli) and Antoine Wright, while trading Marion, Kris Humphries and Nathan Jawai. Around the same time, Parker signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers, while Indiana point guard Jarrett Jack was signed to back up José Calderón and former Raptor Radoslav Nesterović was brought back to the fold. Finally, Carlos Delfino and Roko Ukić were moved to the Milwaukee Bucks for Amir Johnson and Sonny Weems. It became increasingly clear that Colangelo, in securing a credible nucleus for the future, was doing this to persuade Bosh to stay.

Regular season

The Raptors opened their season with a 101–91 home win over LeBron James' Cleveland Cavaliers. Bosh and Andrea Bargnani recorded impressive numbers—with Bosh leading the league in rebounds and free throw attempts, and also as one of the top scorers—but the Raptors were slow off the blocks, going 7–8 in their first 15 games. In that period, although the Raptors was fourth in the league in number of points scored per game, they were second last in the league in number of points allowed per game as well. Newcomer Wright criticised the team for being unfocused in pre-game preparations, and appealed to team captain Bosh to change that. The Raptors persisted in being one of the worst defensive teams in the league, and their descent culminated in a 146–115 drubbing by the Atlanta Hawks—the second worst defeat in franchise history—bringing their record to 7–13. They were soon ranked last in most points allowed per 100 possessions, earning a defensive rating that was 10.8% worse than the second-last team, which was the largest disparity in NBA history. The team held a meeting to clear up communication issues among teammates, and this was followed by three consecutive wins.

Türkoğlu was having difficulty adapting to his new team, while injuries were also an issue for the Raptors: Evans had yet to feature with more than a third of the season gone, while Calderón missed a dozen after 20 games into the season. This, however, allowed front court role players like Johnson and Weems to pick up more minutes, and Jack to start at the point. Toronto compiled a 5-game winning streak—its best in years—to climb back into the playoff race, and found themselves 16–17 to round off the year after a bad start to December, and .500 after 36 games. They were able to maintain this record for the next few games, beating premier teams such as the San Antonio Spurs, Orlando Magic, Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers along the way, while Bosh continued leading the league in double doubles and was only one of three players to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds a game. By the time the All-Star break arrived, the team had a 29–23 record, going 18–6 after the emergency team meeting in mid-December, which was the second best in the league after Cleveland.

After hitting a season-high of six games above .500, Toronto's run of good form came to a halt after the All-Star break, due in large part to an injury to Bosh which occurred in a Feb. 17 OT loss to Memphis. The team struggled and went under .500 on 14 March 2010, going 32–33. Their form in March continued to be patchy, and their drop in the conference rankings resulted in a close jostle with the Chicago Bulls for the eighth and final playoffs spot. Triano also adjusted the starting lineup, moving Türkoğlu and DeRozan to the bench and Wright and Weems in the opposite direction. As the Bulls closed in on the Raptors, Bosh and Türkoğlu suffered injuries, with the former being ruled out of the regular season five games before it ended. When Chicago subsequently routed Toronto, the eighth spot remained up for grabs until the final day of the regular season: if Toronto beat New York and Chicago lost to Charlotte, Toronto would prevail as they led the head-to-head 2–1; however, while the Raptors defeated the Knicks, the Bulls won against the Bobcats and Chicago took the final spot, with a record of 41–41, one win above Toronto.

Standings

Game log

Regular season

|- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1 | October 28 | Cleveland | | Andrea Bargnani (28) | Chris Bosh (16) | José Calderón (11) | Air Canada Centre 20,152 | 1–0 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 2 | October 30 | @ Memphis | | Chris Bosh (37) | Chris Bosh (12) | Jarrett Jack (5) | FedExForum 10,563 | 1–1

|- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 3 | November 1 | Orlando | | Chris Bosh (35) | Chris Bosh (16) | José Calderón (6) | Air Canada Centre 18,147 | 1–2 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 4 | November 4 | Detroit | | Chris Bosh (25) | Andrea Bargnani (12) | Jarrett Jack, Hedo Türkoğlu (6) | Air Canada Centre 17,915 | 2–2 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 5 | November 6 | @ New Orleans | | Chris Bosh (27) | Andrea Bargnani (9) | José Calderón (8) | New Orleans Arena 15,010 | 3–2 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 6 | November 7 | @ Dallas | | Chris Bosh (26) | Chris Bosh (12) | José Calderón (7) | American Airlines Center 19,977 | 3–3 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 7 | November 9 | @ San Antonio | | Chris Bosh (32) | Chris Bosh (10) | José Calderón (9) | AT&T Center 17,714 | 3–4 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 8 | November 11 | Chicago | | Chris Bosh (28) | Chris Bosh (11) | José Calderón (6) | Air Canada Centre 16,310 | 4–4 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 9 | November 13 | @ L.A. Clippers | | Chris Bosh (21) | Chris Bosh (14) | José Calderón (9) | Staples Center 15,615 | 5–4 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 10 | November 15 | @ Phoenix | | Chris Bosh (25) | Chris Bosh (10) | José Calderón (7) | US Airways Center 16,605 | 5–5 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 11 | November 17 | @ Denver | | DeMar DeRozan (17) | Chris Bosh (14) | José Calderón (7) | Pepsi Center 16,446 | 5–6 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 12 | November 18 | @ Utah | | Chris Bosh (32) | Chris Bosh (17) | Jarrett Jack (5) | EnergySolutions Arena 17,789 | 5–7 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 13 | November 20 | Miami | | Chris Bosh (29) | Chris Bosh (12) | José Calderón (10) | Air Canada Centre 19,800 | 6–7 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 14 | November 22 | Orlando | | Chris Bosh (22) | Andrea Bargnani (9) | Jarrett Jack (11) | Air Canada Centre 17,233 | 6–8 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 15 | November 24 | Indiana | | José Calderón (21) | Chris Bosh (12) | José Calderón, Hedo Türkoğlu (7) | Air Canada Centre 17,136 | 7–8 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 16 | November 25 | @ Charlotte | | Chris Bosh (18) | Chris Bosh (14) | José Calderón (8) | Time Warner Cable Arena 13,689 | 7–9 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 17 | November 27 | @ Boston | | Chris Bosh, Hedo Türkoğlu (20) | Chris Bosh (13) | Jarrett Jack (5) | TD Garden 18,624 | 7–10 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 18 | November 29 | Phoenix | | Chris Bosh (30) | Chris Bosh (17) | José Calderón (7) | Air Canada Centre 17,721 | 7–11 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 19 | December 1 | Washington | | Chris Bosh (22) | Chris Bosh (14) | Hedo Türkoğlu (6) | Air Canada Centre 15,776 | 7–12 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 20 | December 2 | @ Atlanta | | DeMar DeRozan (21) | Amir Johnson (7) | Jarrett Jack (8) | Philips Arena 12,272 | 7–13 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 21 | December 4 | @ Washington | | Chris Bosh (31) | Chris Bosh (16) | José Calderón (9) | Verizon Center 20,173 | 8–13 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 22 | December 5 | @ Chicago | | Chris Bosh (25) | Chris Bosh (12) | Jarrett Jack (9) | United Center 20,481 | 9–13 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 23 | December 8 | Minnesota | | Chris Bosh (21) | Chris Bosh (16) | Jarrett Jack (8) | Air Canada Centre 15,167 | 10–13 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 24 | December 9 | @ Milwaukee | | Chris Bosh (26) | Chris Bosh (10) | Jarrett Jack (7) | Air Canada Centre 12,637 | 10–14 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 25 | December 11 | Atlanta | | Andrea Bargnani (17) | Chris Bosh (10) | Hedo Türkoğlu (8) | Air Canada Centre 17,032 | 10–15 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 26 | December 13 | Houston | | Chris Bosh (27) | Jarrett Jack (8) | Jarrett Jack (8) | Air Canada Centre 17,111 | 11–15 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 27 | December 15 | @ Miami | | Chris Bosh (28) | Andrea Bargnani, DeMar DeRozan (7) | Chris Bosh, Hedo Türkoğlu (4) | American Airlines Arena 15,106 | 11–16 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 28 | December 16 | @ Orlando | | Chris Bosh (20) | Chris Bosh (6) | Jarrett Jack (5) | Amway Arena 17,461 | 11–17 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 29 | December 18 | New Jersey | | Amir Johnson (18) | Chris Bosh (8) | Jarrett Jack (9) | Air Canada Centre 15,901 | 12–17 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 30 | December 20 | New Orleans | | Chris Bosh (25) | Amir Johnson (12) | Jarrett Jack, Hedo Türkoğlu (7) | Air Canada Centre 15,790 | 13–17 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 31 | December 23 | @ Detroit | | Andrea Bargnani (21) | Chris Bosh (9) | Hedo Türkoğlu (11) | The Palace of Auburn Hills 19,396 | 14–17 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 32 | December 27 | Detroit | | Chris Bosh (25) | Chris Bosh (16) | Hedo Türkoğlu (6) | Air Canada Centre 19,800 | 15–17 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 33 | December 30 | Charlotte | | Chris Bosh (33) | Chris Bosh (13) | Jarrett Jack (6) | Air Canada Centre 18,979 | 16–17

|- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 34 | January 2 | @ Boston | | Chris Bosh (25) | Chris Bosh (9) | Jarrett Jack, Hedo Türkoğlu (7) | TD Garden 18,624 | 16–18 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 35 | January 3 | San Antonio | | Chris Bosh (22) | Chris Bosh (15) | Jarrett Jack (8) | Air Canada Centre 18,323 | 17–18 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 36 | January 6 | @ Orlando | | Andrea Bargnani, Chris Bosh (18) | Chris Bosh (12) | José Calderón (8) | Amway Arena 17,461 | 18–18 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 37 | January 8 | @ Philadelphia | | Chris Bosh (29) | Chris Bosh (9) | Chris Bosh (6) | Wachovia Center 15,264 | 19–18 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 38 | January 10 | Boston | | Chris Bosh (31) | Chris Bosh (13) | Hedo Türkoğlu (9) | Air Canada Centre 19,800 | 19–19 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 39 | January 11 | @ Indiana | | Chris Bosh (27) | Andrea Bargnani (17) | José Calderón (6) | Conseco Fieldhouse 11,039 | 19–20 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 40 | January 15 | @ New York | | Andrea Bargnani (24) | Andrea Bargnani (12) | José Calderón (6) | Madison Square Garden 19,763 | 20–20 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 41 | January 17 | Dallas | | Chris Bosh (23) | Chris Bosh (13) | José Calderón, Jarrett Jack (7) | Air Canada Centre 19,004 | 21–20 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 42 | January 19 | @ Cleveland | | Chris Bosh (21) | Chris Bosh (10) | José Calderón (6) | Quicken Loans Arena 20,562 | 21–21 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 43 | January 20 | @ Milwaukee | | Chris Bosh (44) | Chris Bosh (12) | José Calderón, Jarrett Jack (5) | Bradley Center 12,724 | 21–22 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 44 | January 22 | Milwaukee | | Jarrett Jack (27) | Antoine Wright (8) | Hedo Türkoğlu (5) | Air Canada Centre 17,819 | 22–22 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 45 | January 24 | L.A. Lakers | | Andrea Bargnani (22) | Chris Bosh (13) | José Calderón, Hedo Türkoğlu (5) | Air Canada Centre 20,111 | 23–22 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 46 | January 27 | Miami | | Andrea Bargnani (27) | Chris Bosh (18) | José Calderón (7) | Air Canada Centre 18,265 | 24–22 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 47 | January 28 | @ New York | | Chris Bosh (27) | Chris Bosh (15) | José Calderón (7) | Madison Square Garden 18,828 | 25–22 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 48 | January 31 | Indiana | | Chris Bosh (26) | Chris Bosh (15) | Chris Bosh, José Calderón (7) | Air Canada Centre 16,715 | 26–22

|- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 49 | February 2 | @ Indiana | | Chris Bosh (35) | Chris Bosh (15) | José Calderón (8) | Conseco Fieldhouse 11,191 | 26–23 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 50 | February 3 | New Jersey | | Andrea Bargnani, Chris Bosh (20) | Sonny Weems (11) | Jarrett Jack (9) | Air Canada Centre 15,222 | 27–23 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 51 | February 7 | Sacramento | | Chris Bosh (35) | Chris Bosh (11) | Jarrett Jack (9) | Air Canada Centre 18,007 | 28–23 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 52 | February 10 | Philadelphia | | Chris Bosh (23) | Chris Bosh (12) | Jarrett Jack (8) | Air Canada Centre 16,651 | 29–23 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 53 | February 17 | Memphis | | Chris Bosh (32) | Andrea Bargnani, Chris Bosh (10) | José Calderón (9) | Air Canada Centre 16,829 | 29–24 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 54 | February 19 | @ New Jersey | | Jarrett Jack (18) | Radoslav Nesterović (7) | Jarrett Jack (10) | Izod Center 11,994 | 30–24 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 55 | February 20 | Washington | | Jarrett Jack (23) | Reggie Evans (7) | Jarrett Jack (8) | Air Canada Centre 19,149 | 31–24 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 56 | February 24 | Portland | | Hedo Türkoğlu (24) | Reggie Evans, Amir Johnson (8) | Jarrett Jack (8) | Air Canada Centre 16,161 | 31–25 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 57 | February 26 | Cleveland | | Andrea Bargnani, Jarrett Jack (24) | DeMar DeRozan, Reggie Evans (5) | José Calderón (8) | Air Canada Centre 20,107 | 31–26 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 58 | February 28 | @ Oklahoma City | | Andrea Bargnani, Sonny Weems (14) | Amir Johnson (11) | José Calderón (7) | Ford Center 18,203 | 31–27

|- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 59 | March 1 | @ Houston | | Marcus Banks (15) | Radoslav Nesterović (7) | Jarrett Jack (6) | Toyota Center 13,943 | 31–28 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 60 | March 5 | New York | | Sonny Weems (20) | Hedo Türkoğlu, Sonny Weems (9) | José Calderón (6) | Air Canada Centre 18,889 | 32–28 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 61 | March 7 | Philadelphia | | Jarrett Jack (20) | Chris Bosh (12) | Jarrett Jack (9) | Air Canada Centre 18,736 | 32–29 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 62 | March 9 | @ L.A. Lakers | | Chris Bosh (22) | Andrea Bargnani (8) | Jarrett Jack (7) | Staples Center 18,997 | 32–30 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 63 | March 10 | @ Sacramento | | Andrea Bargnani (20) | Hedo Türkoğlu (7) | Chris Bosh, Jarrett Jack, Hedo Türkoğlu (3) | ARCO Arena 13,412 | 32–31 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 64 | March 13 | @ Golden State | | Chris Bosh, José Calderón (24) | Chris Bosh (11) | José Calderón (12) | Oracle Arena 17,655 | 32–32 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 65 | March 14 | @ Portland | | Chris Bosh (28) | Chris Bosh (7) | José Calderón (7) | Rose Garden Arena 20,639 | 32–33 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 66 | March 17 | Atlanta | | Andrea Bargnani (22) | Andrea Bargnani (11) | José Calderón (6) | Air Canada Centre 18,441 | 33–33 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 67 | March 19 | Oklahoma City | | Chris Bosh (22) | Chris Bosh (10) | Jarrett Jack (7) | Air Canada Centre 19,351 | 33–34 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 68 | March 20 | @ New Jersey | | Chris Bosh (36) | Chris Bosh, Jarrett Jack (8) | José Calderón (8) | Izod Center 11,048 | 34–34 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 69 | March 22 | @ Minnesota | | Chris Bosh (21) | Chris Bosh (10) | Jarrett Jack (8) | Target Center 14,554 | 35–34 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 70 | March 24 | Utah | | Chris Bosh (20) | Reggie Evans (9) | Chris Bosh, José Calderón (3) | Air Canada Centre 16,178 | 35–35 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 71 | March 26 | Denver | | Chris Bosh (18) | Andrea Bargnani (15) | Chris Bosh, José Calderón (6) | Air Canada Centre 19,800 | 35–36 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 72 | March 28 | @ Miami | | Chris Bosh (19) | Chris Bosh (6) | José Calderón (7) | American Airlines Arena 19,600 | 35–37 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 73 | March 29 | @ Charlotte | | Chris Bosh (22) | Chris Bosh (11) | José Calderón (7) | Time Warner Cable Arena 14,534 | 36–37 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 74 | March 31 | L.A. Clippers | | Chris Bosh (34) | Chris Bosh (11) | Jarrett Jack (10) | Air Canada Centre 16,106 | 37–37 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 75 | April 3 | @ Philadelphia | | Chris Bosh (28) | Chris Bosh (12) | José Calderón (10) | Wachovia Center 13,430 | 38–37 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 76 | April 4 | Golden State | | Chris Bosh (42) | Chris Bosh (12) | Jarrett Jack (4) | Air Canada Centre 17,509 | 38–38 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 77 | April 6 | @ Cleveland | | Jarrett Jack (23) | Amir Johnson (10) | Jarrett Jack (6) | Quicken Loans Arena 20,562 | 38–39 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 78 | April 7 | Boston | | Sonny Weems (21) | Antoine Wright (7) | José Calderón (9) | Air Canada Centre 18,793 | 38–40 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 79 | April 9 | @ Atlanta | | Amir Johnson, Sonny Weems (18) | Amir Johnson (13) | José Calderón (10) | Philips Arena 19,382 | 38–41 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 80 | April 11 | Chicago | | Andrea Bargnani, Sonny Weems (18) | Hedo Türkoğlu (19) | Hedo Türkoğlu (9) | Air Canada Centre 19,515 | 38–42 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 81 | April 12 | @ Detroit | | Andrea Bargnani (33) | Hedo Türkoğlu (8) | Jarrett Jack (12) | The Palace of Auburn Hills 22,076 | 39–42 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 82 | April 14 | New York | | Andrea Bargnani, DeMar DeRozan (24) | DeMar DeRozan (9) | Jarrett Jack (6) | Air Canada Centre 18,333 | 40–42

Player statistics

Regular season

• † Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the Raptors only.

Transactions

Trades

Free agents

References

References

1. (2010-07-07). "Source: Bosh to Miami, will join Wade with Heat".
2. [http://www.nba.com/sixers/news/090609_Kapono.html Philadelphia 76ers Acquire Forward Jason Kapono From Toronto], nba.com accessed 15 June 2009.
3. [https://www.espn.com/nba/draft2009/news/story?id=4287558 Griffin top pick in NBA draft], sports.espn.go.com, 26 June 2009, accessed 27 June 2009.
4. Stein, Marc, [https://www.espn.com/nba/news/story?id=4316885 "Four-team trade gets league OK"], sports.espn.go.com, 9 July 2009, accessed 10 July 2009.
5. [https://www.espn.com/nba/news/story?id=4412174 Bogut aiming for training camp], sports.espn.go.com, accessed 24 August 2009.
6. Grange, Michael, "Jack could provide fringe benefits for struggling Raptors ", ''The Globe and Mail'', 12 July 2009.
7. [http://www.nba.com/games/20091028/CLETOR/boxscore.html Cavaliers at Raptors Boxscore], nba.com, 28 October 2009, accessed 29 October 2009.
8. Feschuk, Dave, [https://www.thestar.com/sports/article/731944--feschuk-raptors-criticized-within-for-pre-game-attitude "Feschuk: Raptors criticized within for pre-game attitude"], thestar.com, accessed 29 November 2009.
9. Feschuk, Dave, [https://www.thestar.com/sports/basketball/nba/raptors/article/733961 "Feschuk: Triano criticized by players"], thestar.com, 3 December 2009, accessed 4 December 2009.
10. Grange, Michael, "Colangelo doesn't pass the buck", ''Globe and Mail'', 4 December 2009.
11. Smith, Doug, [https://www.thestar.com/sports/basketball/nba/raptors/chrisbosh/article/735013--raptors-crush-bulls-110-78 "Raptors crush Bulls 110-78"], 5 December 2009, accessed 6 December 2009.
12. Scaringi, Joe, [http://www.thegoodpoint.com/basketball/jun10/raptors-lacklustre-season-leads-to-uncertain-future.html "Raptors’ lacklustre season leads to uncertain future"] {{Webarchive. link. (2010-09-30 , thegoodpoint.com, 16 June 2010, accessed 21 June 2010.)
13. Smith, Doug, [https://www.thestar.com/sports/basketball/nba/raptors/chrisbosh/article/791800--raptors-dismay-bosh-done-turkoglu-hurt-loss-to-celtics "Raptors dismay: Bosh done, Turkoglu hurt, loss to Celtics"], thestar.com, 8 April 2010, accessed 10 April 2010.