TORONTO – Toronto Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic called the primary two games of his team’s first-round playoff series against the Cleveland Cavaliers a learning experience.
If the Raptors wish to overcome the 0-2 deficit and fight back within the best-of-seven series, which resumes Thursday for Game 3 at Scotiabank Arena, they’ll have to apply those lessons quickly.
“Expecting us to be perfect at once wouldn’t be fair toward our team and the young core that we’ve,” said Rajakovic. “But once you take a look at the large picture, how essential those are, and what are we learning through this? I’m telling you, our team is so a lot better now than seven days ago. We already got so a lot better. We’re going to proceed convalescing.”
The Raptors dropped a lopsided 126-113 decision in Game 1 in Cleveland. Game 2 was tighter, but Toronto still lost 115-105 on Monday.
Because the series shifts to Toronto for the following two games, the Raptors face a steep climb to achieve the second round for the primary time since 2020. But they continue to be confident of their ability to reply at home.
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“I believe that the (Game 2) effort was higher. We got some answers. We got some adjustments. We got more adjustments coming,” Rajakovic said on Wednesday after practice at Toronto’s OVO Athletic Centre. “That’s the fantastic thing about the playoff series. We’re excited to come back home, play in front of our fans, get the Jurassic Park going outside of the sector and fight back.”
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One area the Raptors want to clean up is turnovers, which have been a difficulty through the primary two games. The Raptors turned the ball over 17 times in Game 1 in comparison with 15 for Cleveland. In Game 2, Toronto recorded 22 turnovers to Cleveland’s 12.
“I believe (Game 2) was really decided with our 22 turnovers that led to 22 points,” said Rajakovic. “That’s something that you just cannot live with within the playoffs and expect to win. And that’s a giant area of emphasis for us, learn how to recuperate through that.”
If the Raptors wish to pull even within the series, they’ll also need more from All-Star Brandon Ingram, who had just seven points on 3-for-15 field-goal attempts in Game 2.
“I’m confident I won’t miss all my shots and discover a rhythm,” Ingram said. “But I’m also confident in our team. I don’t want to take a seat here and make this all about what I’m doing.”
Rajakovic said Immanuel Quickley, the Raptors’ place to begin guard who has missed the primary two games of the series with a strained right hamstring, continues to progress in his recovery. It will not be yet clear if he’ll suit up for Game 3.
“Literally each day, he’s feeling higher, he’s moving higher, he’s running higher. He’s going through that technique of return to play,” Rajakovic said. “He’s on the court at once getting extra work, so we’ll see where he’s at tomorrow.”
Second-year guard Jamal Shead began in Quickley’s place in Games 1 and a pair of.
Because the Raptors look to use lessons from the primary two games in Game 3, they’re counting on the Scotiabank Arena crowd to assist turn the series.
“We had 41 games at home, and (the fans) showed out each time, they were super energetic,” said Raptors forward Sandro Mamukelashvili. “They were at all times very involved. They care, and I believe it’s an awesome atmosphere at home. I saw the way it was in Cleveland. I believe our fans are higher than Cleveland fans, so that they just got to come back on the market and provides us the additional boost we’d like.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 22, 2026.
© 2026 The Canadian Press