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Golden State Warriors guard Monta Ellis drives to the hoop past Toronto Raptors forward Carlos Delfino. (J.P. Moczulski/CP)
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- Golden State Warriors
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Toronto Raptors
- Kelenna Azubuike
- Andrea Bargnani
- Marco Belinelli
- Andris Biedrins
- Chris Bosh
- Austin Croshere
- Baron Davis
- T.J. Ford
- Stephen Jackson
- Jason Kapono
Chris Bosh is a usually one of the last players to get showered and changed after a Toronto Raptors game.
In the aftermath of the Toronto's 106-100 setback to the Golden State Warriors at the Air Canada Centre yesterday afternoon — the Raptors' fourth loss in six home games this season — Bosh was nowhere to be seen when the media were finally allowed entry into the team's inner sanctum.
His locker was empty and Bosh was spotted, already changed, in an adjacent lounge reserved for players.
Apparently, Bosh was feeling "crummy" about the latest in a string of disappointing outings he has experienced over the first seven weeks of the NBA season and did not feel up to talking with reporters.
Bosh was rendered largely ineffective against the high-octane attack that the Warriors employ, struggling to connect on only four of his 12 shots and scoring only 11 points.
Even his usually deft touch at the free-throw line deserted Bosh against the Warriors, as he made only three of six shots.
Bosh did have 11 rebounds, but it was not enough to bring him out of the early-season funk he has mysteriously drifted into.
"Same, same, same old, same old," Bosh said dejectedly of the state of his game when he did finally emerge to talk after the initial crush of reporters had dwindled to a more manageable handful. "I haven't progressed yet.
"I'm happy that I did rebound the ball a little bit better today. And I just have to build on that."
An NBA all-star last season, when he led the Raptors with an average of 22.6 points and 10.7 rebounds, Bosh's average has slipped to 16.8 points and 6.4 rebounds through the first 10 games of this season.
Despite his struggles, the Raptors have still managed to build a semi-respectable 5-5 record.
But with the Raptors now heading out on the road for their next three games, head coach Sam Mitchell and the rest of the Raptors realize they have to get their star player back on track if they want to continue to remain competitive in the Eastern Conference.
"Obviously, we need Chris to play better," was Mitchell's assessment.
This was a game the Raptors certainly could have won, carting an 88-80 lead into the fourth quarter, largely on the inspired play of point guard T.J. Ford, who scored 21 of his game-best 29 points in the first half.
"He's a handful, he's a load," admiring Don Nelson, the Golden State coach, said afterward of Ford. "He's the closest to [Steve] Nash that I've seen."
But the Warriors are not the NBA's top-scoring team for nothing, and eight points can be eaten up fairly quickly with the likes of Baron Davis bulling his way around on the court.
The Raptors' shooting dried up in the fourth quarter, in which they were 4-for-22 and were outscored 26-12 by the Warriors, who won for the second time in eight outings this season.
Davis drove the rally, lowering his shoulder to muscle his way past Bosh in the lane for a driving layup that knotted the score at 91 with about 61/2-minutes left in the game.
Later, Davis was driving inside again and drew the double team in the paint, but managed to spot Kelenna Azubuike, who was left unattended in the right corner.
Davis hit Azubuike with a pass, and the three-point shot was good, increasing the Warriors' lead to 101-95 with just more than two minutes remaining.
And when Davis hit an 18-foot fade-away shot shortly after, the Raptors were done.
"We've just got to make it harder for people to come in to this building," Ford said. "I think right now everybody feels that they're confident about coming and getting a win.
"We've got to find a way to eliminate that thought process."
During yesterday's game, the Raptors issued an update on the status of centre Rasho Nesterovic, who injured his right ankle during a game against the Utah Jazz last Wednesday.
The Raptors said that after further medical evaluation, the seven-foot centre will be sidelined for one to two weeks with a Grade 2 sprain of the ankle.
