The Toronto Raptors are going to need coach Nick Nurse to make adjustments to their rotation ahead of Game 3. With the series tied 1-1, it is crucial that they come prepared with a sufficient strategy to at least come away with at least one win in Philadelphia.

Something that proved to be quite costly in Game 2 for the Raptors was that Kawhi Leonard, Marc Gasol, and Danny Green weren't brought back into the game during the fourth quarter until the 8:37 mark. Toronto went from trailing with the score being 69-63 at the beginning of the period to being down 76-65 until they finally called a full timeout.

The issue with the Raptors not having Leonard on the floor to start the fourth quarter was that it placed them at a significant disadvantage for a full 3:23 of game action since Philadelphia was using their entire starting lineup. Toronto must synch up their rotation in a way that won't put them in a tough spot in crucial moments.

“Yeah, I think we always take a look at it,” Nurse told reporters after Game 2 when asked about his rotation. “We're always thinking about possible adjustments to it or changes or whatever and this will certainly give us cause to reflect on that for sure.

The need for improvement from Toronto goes beyond just lineup choices. They ended up outscoring Philadelphia by a point in the final period and ultimately by a total of eight points in the second half. Where the greatest failure lied was in the fact that they were outscored by 13 points in the first half.

The Raptors are going to have to come out of the gate in Game 3 with better offensive production. They were held to a mere 17 points in the first quarter on 7-of-24 (29.2%) shooting from the field and 1-of-8 (12.5%) from beyond the arc. That lack of offensive execution put the Raptors at a real disadvantage.

The 76ers managed to disrupt the Raptors' offensive attack by changing up their front-court assignments. They tasked Tobias Harris with guarding Gasol and that allowed Joel Embiid to match up with Pascal Siakam. There was an inability to capitalize on the miss-matches that were presented to them and it proved to be a real problem.

“I feel like putting (Tobias) Harris on Marc (Gasol) probably got us out of rhythm a little bit,” Leonard said. “Once we started figuring it out, I feel like we started playing better.”

It is essential that Nurse finds combinations aside from the team's starting lineup that can produce net positive results. The most problematic combinations that the Raptors deployed in Game 2 consisted at least Norman Powell, Fred VanVleet, or Serge Ibaka. Those three players simply need to find ways to improve and the they have actually discussed that.

“It’s a long series. Me, Serge and Fred have been talking about how we can make an impact offensively. Defence is just about energy and limiting the mistakes and breakdowns on what we’re trying to do with the gameplan,” Powell said. “But offensively it’s just trying to find a rhythm trying to find a flow, trying to find some more movement out there.”

The fact of the matter is that Toronto needs their role players to execute better on the offensive end of the floor. Leonard (35), Siakam (21), and Lowry (20) each combined to score 68 points while the rest of the team combined to produce only 21 points while shooting 4-of-25 (16%) from the field and 3-of-14 (21.4%) from deep.

“We missed a lot of shots in Game 2 that we normally make,” Powell said.

“We know that we’re going to make those shots in the next game and just stay with it and make a few adjustments on the defensive end and a few adjustments on the offensive end, how they switched it up, putting (Joel) Embiid on Pascal (Siakam) and trying to exploit that a little bit. I think we’re going to head down there and play pretty well.”

There is going to be reflection from the coaching staff regarding the Raptors' rotation. Nurse is going to evaluate what adjustments could be made but isn't going to show his hand before Game 3 tips off. It doesn't sound like drastic changes should be expected.

“We're always thinking about possible adjustments to it or changes or whatever and this will certainly give us cause to reflect on that for sure. What we come up with for Game 3 I don't know yet.

“You know there's always little things you wish you changed – left this guy in longer or put this guy in sooner or whatever. But I think we played pretty well with this rotation, we wanted to try and stay with it as much as we can.”

What Nurse ultimately decides to do in terms of adjustments will remain to be seen until Game 3 is underway. Managing to make the right calls could bring a needed swing in the momentum in the series.