At long last, the Toronto Raptors are at full strength.
In their matchup with the New York Knicks on Jan. 2, the Raptors had their full rotation available for the first time this season. They made the most of it, cruising to a 120-105 victory to improve to 16-17 on the season.
Fred VanVleet continued his All-Star campaign with 35 points, five rebounds and five assists. Pascal Siakam chipped in with 20 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists while OG Anunoby (14), Scottie Barnes (13) and Chris Boucher (12) each scored in double figures.
The Raptors are now in 10th place in the Eastern Conference standings, sitting one game ahead of the Knicks in 11th and 1.5 games ahead of the Atlanta Hawks in 12th.
If that’s not All-Star Status we don’t know what is
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) January 3, 2022
35 PTS | 5 REB | 5 AST@FredVanVleet | #NBAAllStar pic.twitter.com/28phgz52O1
Next up? Toronto's first meeting of the season with the San Antonio Spurs.
The Spurs enter having lost three straight games, their most recent loss coming in overtime to the Detroit Pistons. They find themselves on the outside looking in on the Western Conference's Play-In picture, but they've been shorthanded lately with multiple players in the league's health and safety protocols.
Dejounte Murray has been one of those players. He's having a season worthy of All-Star and Most Improved Player consideration, posting averages of 17.8 points, 8.8 assists, 8.4 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game.
Murray recently cleared COVID protocols, but he has been ruled out for Tuesday's game due to return to competition reconditioning.
This is the last of four straight home games for the Raptors. On Wednesday, they'll travel to Milwaukee to take on the defending champions. They'll then be back in Toronto for a three-game homestand.
NBA League Pass: Sign up to unlock live out-of-market games (7-day free trial)
What channel is Raptors vs. Spurs on?
- TV channel: SN One (Canada), BSSW-SA or League Pass (United States)
- Radio: TSN 1050
What time does Raptors vs. Spurs start?
- Date: Tuesday, Jan. 4
- Time: 7:00 p.m. ET | 4:00 p.m. PT
Raptors vs. Spurs injury report
| Team | Player | Status | Reason |
| Raptors | Bonga, Isaac | Questionable | Return to Competition Reconditioning |
| Dragic, Goran | Out | Not With Team | |
| Johnson, David | Out | Injury/Illness - Left Calf; Strain | |
| Spurs | Bates-Diop, Keita | Questionable | Injury/Illness - Right Hamstring; Tightness |
| Cacok, Devontae | Out | Health and Safety Protocols | |
| Collins, Zach | Out | Injury/Illness - Left Ankle; Stress Fracture | |
| McDermott, Doug | Out | Health and Safety Protocols | |
| Murray, Dejounte | Out | Return to Competition Reconditioning | |
| Walker IV, Lonnie | Out | Health and Safety Protocols |
Raptors next five games
| Date | Opponent | Time (ET) | Location |
| Jan. 4 | vs. Spurs | 7:00 p.m. | Scotiabank Arena |
| Jan. 5 | at Bucks | 8:00 p.m. | Fiserv Forum |
| Jan. 7 | vs. Jazz | 7:30 p.m. | Scotiabank Arena |
| Jan. 9 | vs. Pelicans | 6:00 p.m. | Scotiabank Arena |
| Jan. 11 | vs. Suns | 7:30 p.m. | Scotiabank Arena |
The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA or its clubs.
