New York Knicks vs Toronto Raptors: Injury Report, Predicted Lineups and Starting 5s - December 10th, 2021 | NBA Season 2021-22

The New York Knicks will finish their three-game road trip at Scotiabank Arena, where they will face the Toronto Raptors on Friday.

New York’s helter-skelter season continued with a thorough beating at the hands of the Indiana Pacers. After a big win against the San Antonio Spurs, the Knicks followed it up with a huge stinker. They hardly looked interested in defense and were outperformed steadily through three quarters.

The New York Knicks can’t afford to take the depleted Toronto Raptors lightly. Doing so could yet add another disappointing loss to their wildly inconsistent campaign.

The Toronto Raptors will continue to march to the beat of the NBA’s drums despite losing a few of their best players to injuries. There is no respite to the weary as they face a potentially strong New York Knicks squad that is still trying to figure things out this season. The team will lean on Fred VanFleet, Pascal Siakam, Scottie Barnes and Gary Trent Jr. to secure a win.

The Toronto Raptors drubbed the New York Knicks the last time they met. The Raptors did it by punishing the Knicks on the break and by driving the ball into the teeth of the defense. Toronto will have a good chance of getting the win on Friday if they can execute the same game plan.

---

New York Knicks Injury Report

The New York Knicks are as healthy as any team can possibly be in the NBA right now. Nerlens Noel, who sat out the last game due to a sore back, has been upgraded to probable.

Meanwhile, Luka Samanic has been assigned to the G-League and will not travel with the team to face the Toronto Raptors.

Player:	Status:	Reason:
Noel, Nerlens	Probable	Injury/Illness - Back; sore lower
Samanic, Luka	Out	G League - Two-Way

---

Toronto Raptors Injury Report

Unlike New York’s clean injury report, the Toronto Raptors’ injury list is littered with significant names. OG Anunoby (hip), Khim Berch (knee) and Goran Dragic (personal) have been ruled out.

Precious Achiuwa (shoulder), who was sidelined in their last game, has been upgraded to questionable. He has the same status as Justin Champagnie (knee).

Player:	Status:	Reason:
Achiuwa, Precious	Questionable	Injury/Illness - Right Shoulder; Tendinitis
Anunoby, OG	Out	Injury/Illness - Left Hip; Pointer
Birch, Khem	Out	Injury/Illness - Right Knee; Swelling
Champagnie, Justin	Questionable	Injury/Illness - Right Knee; Tendinitis
Dragic, Goran	Out	Not With Team

---

New York Knicks vs Toronto Raptors: Predicted Lineups

New York Knicks

Head coach Tom Thibodeau has been forced to make significant changes due to the New York Knicks' inconsistency [Photo: Sporting News]

Mitchell Robinson could get back the starting center role against the length and athleticism of the Toronto Raptors’ frontline. RJ Barrett and Julius Randle will take their usual small forward and power forward spots in the frontcourt, respectively.

The backcourt duo of Alec Burks and Evan Fournier should continue for the New York Knicks.

Toronto Raptors

The Toronto Raptors have been using different starting units amid the spate of injuries to their players. If Precious Achiuwa remains sidelined, Chris Boucher should see more minutes in the starting center position.

The versatility of Scottie Barnes and Pascal Siakam will allow head coach Nick Nurse some leeway in his lineup. They’ll take the power forward and small forward roles before tip-off. Fred VanVleet and Gary Trent Jr. will resume their partnership on the backcourt.

---

New York Knicks vs Toronto Raptors: Predicted Starting 5s

New York Knicks

Point Guard - Alec Burks | Shooting Guard - Evan Fournier | Small Forward - RJ Barrett | Power Forward - Julius Randle | Center - Mitchell Robinson

Toronto Raptors

Point Guard - Fred VanVleet | Shooting Guard - Gary Trent Jr. | Small Forward - Pascal Siakam | Power Forward - Scottie Barnes | Center - Chris Boucher