Kawhi Leonard will miss at least another week with swelling in his left knee, and the injuries are piling up for the Toronto Raptors. Toronto won both games Leonard played but has gone 3-5 since.

Scottie Barnes (left groin strain) and Immanuel Quickley (right hamstring) have each missed two straight games, while Collin Murray-Boyles sat out the 118-102 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies with an illness.

Where Toronto Is Coming Up Short

Toronto didn’t lose to Memphis in the paint. The Raptors outscored the Grizzlies 50-42 inside.

The difference came at the 3-point line and the free-throw line. The Grizzlies scored 16 more points than Toronto from those two spots, matching the final margin.

Jamal Shead has kept the offense organized, with 27 assists and four turnovers over the last two games. The bigger problem is shooting, starting with RJ Barrett.

Among the 77 players with at least 50 3-point attempts, Barrett’s 27.8% shooting ranks 73rd. His 61.3% free-throw shooting ranks 40th of 41 players with at least 50 attempts, ahead of only Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert.

When a team’s highest-volume shooter can’t stretch the floor or cash in at the line, everyone else has to hit their open looks. Too few players are doing that right now.

Why Alijah Martin Has the Most to Gain

Last season, as a rookie on a two-way contract, Alijah Martin averaged 2.2 points in 6.3 minutes and made just 4 of 21 3-point attempts.

Then he scored 27 points on 9-of-11 shooting in a 121-107 win over the Milwaukee Bucks, going 6 of 7 from deep. Toronto was plus-22 with him on the floor. He cooled off against Memphis with two points in 21 minutes, but over the two games he’s 10 of 15 from the field and 6 of 9 from 3-point range.

His shooting could address a problem Toronto desperately needs to solve. When defenders don’t respect the players surrounding Barrett, they can crowd the paint and make his drives more difficult. A reliable perimeter threat forces opposing defenses to make a different decision.

Ja’Kobe Walter, who has also taken on additional wing minutes, hasn’t provided much relief. He’s 6 of 25 from the field and 3 of 14 from 3-point range over the last two games.

Two games are hardly enough to establish Martin as a reliable shooter, but he’s shown he can contribute when given minutes.

He also has something riding on it. After signing a standard two-year deal in July, only $500,000 of his $2.57 million salary for 2027-28 is guaranteed, according to Spotrac.