""It starts with establishing our identity on the defensive end," now third-year head coach Darko Rajakovic said on Day 1 of training camp. "I really believe that our defensive identity has to come from a mindset that we want to dominate on the defensive end. That we want to make our opponents very uncomfortable.""
""We're going to start building our (defensive) foundation starting now," the bench boss said last September. Messaging that his players promptly echoed: Immanuel Quickley mentioned how defence was "probably one of the biggest things we hit on," Scottie Barnes said the Raptors wanted opponents to "play faster" and Jakob Poeltl added the team was trying to be "as disruptive as possible.""
""All of which was well and good, but ultimately, the Raptors finished with a middle-of-the-pack defensive rating, while their "most important guy is going to be the guy who's guarding the ball" style, as Rajakovic explained, wasn't without its faults, as Toronto led the league in average fouls (21.2). That's not to say it was all talk and no action, however, as the Raptors said they wanted to pressure ball handlers, and they most certainly did - ranked fourth for highest pick-up distance and fifth in average deflections (17.9).""
The Toronto Raptors have prioritized defence for the 2025-26 season, emphasizing a defensive identity focused on dominating opponents and making them uncomfortable. Head coach Darko Rajakovic framed the approach as a mindset shift during training camp. Players previously echoed a similar defensive emphasis, calling for pressure on ball handlers and disruptive team play. Last season the team finished with a middle-of-the-pack defensive rating and led the league in fouls (21.2), despite ranking highly in pick-up distance and deflections. The organization aims to build a stronger defensive foundation heading into the regular season.
Read at Raptors Republic
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