‘Outstanding job for us’ Raptors downplay Brandon Ingram’s struggles

Two-time all-star confident things will turn around for him

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Published Apr 25, 2026  •  3 minute read

Brandon Ingram of the Toronto Raptors protects the ball from Cleveland Cavaliers' Dean Wade during the second half of an NBA playoff game in Toronto on April 23, 2026. Photo by Frank Gunn /The Canadian Press

The Toronto Raptors seem to be taking a nice to have, rather than a need to have, approach to Brandon Ingram’s scoring potential ahead of the biggest game of the season.

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Toronto’s top shot-maker has been held to only 12 points a game, fourth on the team, and below 40% from the field over three games against the Cleveland Cavaliers. He has missed only two fewer shots than Scottie Barnes, even though Barnes has attempted 17 more. He has misfired on four more shots than RJ Barrett, even though Barrett has attempted 12 more. Ingram also has been uncharacteristically turnover-prone and has been victimized repeatedly defensively by Cleveland. All in all, not good at all, but you never would guess it given how the Raptors have been talking about Ingram and how composed he was up at the podium after practice on Saturday.

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“I see that he’s doing an outstanding job for us,” claimed head coach Darko Rajakovic when asked by the Toronto Sun if Ingram’s poor series was wearing on Ingram at all.

The Raptors have made it clear throughout that they believe, or at least want everyone else to believe, that they’re OK with Cleveland closely tracking Ingram, allowing him to make plays or create space for others.

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“The way they decided to guard him, it’s opening up a lot of stuff for us. We don’t have a say to decide what they’re going to do, how they’re going to guard us, will they be blitzing or not blitzing, or top locking, or whatever,” Rajakovic said. “That’s their decision. I know one thing, that he’s creating a lot of gravity for a reason, and then that’s opening up a lot of stuff for the whole team. And I thought that in this last game, he was aggressive, that he was trying to make the right plays,” Rajakovic said.

Jakob Poeltl agreed. “I think there’s always more to improve,” said the much-maligned starting centre. “Yeah, but at some point you also got to just take what the defence gives you. You still want to try to create advantages for him,” Poeltl said, referring to setting screens, “to get him going. But then when they send like, two or three guys at him, somebody else got to be able to step up and make use of that room, that spacing, that he creates for us by just the attention he demands from the defence.”

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So far, that has been Barnes and Barrett, both brilliant overall, and little-used Jamison Battle, who swung Game 3 in Toronto’s favour in the fourth quarter.

Ingram praised Barrett while also saying of his own game that he would use past experience to make more of an impact moving forward without forcing it, which could throw off the offence.

“(Barrett’s) name has been everywhere (in trade rumours) this year. His name hasn’t been brought up a lot on the positive side,” Ingram said. “His mindset is to prove to people that he belongs on this floor.”

Ironically, that’s where Ingram now finds himself, with Toronto finding success more than once in the series with Rajakovic leaving him on the bench.

“I tell myself to keep going. I’ve been in this situation a bunch of times, where shots weren’t falling and things weren’t going my way,” Ingram said. “Keep going, keep communicating, don’t let it spiral down to the defensive side of the basketball.”

There’s work to be done there too. Whether it’s falling asleep on cuts, not boxing out to finish a defensive possession or in other ways, Ingram has not been as strong defensively as he was in the regular season.

“I expect him to continue getting better as the series (progresses),” Rajakovic said.

Ingram expects the same.

We’ll find out Sunday afternoon.

@WolstatSun

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