3 reasons Kyle Lowry might be frustrated with Raptors

Just when you thought the Toronto Raptors' midseason slide couldn't possibly get worse, last year's Eastern Conference finalists somehow managed to dig even deeper in their quest for rock bottom.

Following the Raptors' 10th loss in 14 games - which saw Toronto blow a 15-point home lead to the Pistons over the final nine minutes - All-Star point guard Kyle Lowry raised eyebrows by admitting he has an idea of what changes need to be made.

Lowry chose not to elaborate Sunday, and added Monday that his comments weren't aimed at any one party, but there are a few reasons why he (and Raptors fans) might be frustrated.

The coaching

The first place people's minds will wander when a star player insinuates changes need to be made is the coaching staff, and it's worth remembering there was a time when there were plenty of reported tensions between Lowry and head coach Dwane Casey.

The defensive-minded Casey, whose six-year run in Toronto makes him the league's fourth-longest tenured coach, has seen the Raptors fall to 18th in defensive efficiency this season. On the other end, the Raps went from scoring at an all-time rate through the first half of the season to owning the 23rd-ranked offense over their last 14 games.

Some of that offensive regression can be attributed to injuries to All-Star DeMar DeRozan and big man Patrick Patterson, but it's fair to wonder whether the rest of the league has simply caught on to Casey's predictable attack, which often devolves into isolation play dominated by DeRozan.

Having said that, the chances of Raptors president Masai Ujiri making a late-season coaching change less than a year after rewarding Casey with a three-year extension are slim to none, and Lowry surely knows that.

Speaking of DeRozan ...

Given Lowry and DeRozan's well-documented bromance, it's extremely unlikely Kyle was thinking about DeMar when he made his postgame comments Sunday, but perhaps he should've been.

While DeRozan is enjoying a career year and has saved the Raptors with late-game plays on multiple occasions, his penchant for dominating and keeping the ball the bigger the stakes get can sometimes be a toxic mix with Casey's affinity for isolation.

A coach should encourage ball movement and hunting the highest-percentage shot, but a star player should also know better - and DeMar has proven to be an effective passer as his game has matured - than to settle for the type of crunch time shots DeRozan hoisted down the stretch of Sunday's loss.

DeRozan is one of the league's most effective high-usage players in isolation, but even so, his 1.02 points per iso possession are far less efficient than an average Raptors possession, which generates 1.115 points.

Whether it's by Casey's design or DeRozan's decision-making, the Raptors will have to score smarter (in addition to obviously defending better) if they want to replicate last year's postseason run.

The roster

The best theory for Lowry's frustration lies in Toronto's roster construction.

Since trading Rudy Gay in December 2013, no East team has won more games than the Raptors, who have cycled players in and out around mainstays Lowry, DeRozan, Patterson, Jonas Valanciunas, and Terrence Ross. But despite their regular season success, the Raptors have appeared in only the fourth-most East playoff games during that time, without Ujiri making a significant trade to shake up that core five or add a third star.

The same continuity that helped the Raptors become one of the most consistent and successful teams of the last four years could be their downfall as stagnation sets in on a core with a clear-cut ceiling that remains below the league's true title contenders.

That realization, along with the Raptors starting a rookie big man 41 out of 55 games this season, might finally be getting to Lowry (and DeRozan). If that's the case, and if the Raptors still hope to re-sign Lowry when he hits free agency again come July, his latest comments might prove to be the final push Ujiri needed to make a move.

The silver lining

There are reasons to believe that a fair share of Toronto's slump can be explained by bad luck.

The Raptors actually own a positive net rating (+1.1 per 100 possessions) over their last 11 games (of which they've only won four), have held a lead in the final two minutes of six of their last 10 losses, and have fallen by five points or less in seven of those 10 losses.

Take those numbers, the DeRozan and Patterson injuries, and a heavy schedule during the period in question into consideration, and you can convince yourself the Raptors should get back on track sooner than later. But many of those close losses can be partly tied to unwise offense and a flailing defense, and other teams have survived the injury bug in better shape.

The Raptors have already dropped to fourth in the East, which would set them up for a second-round matchup with Cleveland rather than an East Final rematch, and are closer to sixth-place Indiana than they are to second-place Boston. Whatever the reasons for their free fall, the Raptors are simply running out of time to right the ship, which, in a worst-case scenario, could mean they're running out of time to appease Lowry.

(Photos courtesy: Action Images)