The Toronto Raptors are 34-19 since trading Rudy Gay to the Sacramento Kings on Dec. 9.

“The move was a good situation for both of us,” DeMar DeRozan said of Gay. “We always hate to see our close friends get traded. I think he’s definitely going to help the Sacramento Kings out a lot, and we’re moving in the right direction, as well. I think it was a win-win situation. You can’t dwell on it too much. I know he’s happy to be in a new situation and get his career restarted. I’m happy for him.”

DeRozan said Gay encouraged him to take more responsibility for the team’s fate after the trade.

“The last four years here, I’ve always been under somebody and I had to learn from them,” DeRozan said. “And the player he is, I just learned from him. He just took me under his wing and I just always listened to Rudy and got a lot of insight. When he got traded, the first thing he told me, ‘This is your time and it’s time to take advantage.’ That meant a lot, just coming from somebody like that.”

The Toronto Raptors beat the Boston Celtics on Wednesday night, bringing them closer to their first playoff berth in six years.

Toronto will clinch a spot in the postseason with their next win or the next loss by the New York Knicks.

Once believed to be headed to the lottery, the Raptors have gone 33-19 since trading Rudy Gay.

“Not just the franchise, but the whole city of Toronto and Canada,” DeMar DeRozan said of how much making the playoffs would mean. “I’ve been here for five years, seen how passionate the fans are, it definitely means a lot. We feed off of that, especially playing at home and the energy they bring. That’d be great for the city.”

The Raptors drafted DeRozan with the ninth overall pick in 2009. He’s appeared in nearly 400 regular season games, but none late into April or May.

“After we play these games and I go through the whole experience then I feel I’ll really have an answer for you,” DeRozan said about the intensity of playing for a title. “It’s still new to me and I’m just trying to learn from the guys that have been in the playoffs, what it’s like leading up to it and how to get prepared.”

Kyle Lowry, who made the postseason with the Houston Rockets back in 2009, has tried to keep his more inexperienced teammates focused on handling their own business amid a race with the Brooklyn Nets for the Atlantic Division title.

“Before the game, I said we can take care of our business tonight,” Lowry said after recording 23 points, nine rebounds and four assists in the 99-90 win over Boston. “We can’t count on anybody else, but we can take care of our own business. I’m not going to lie though, I think everybody tonight is rooting for [the Kings to beat the Knicks] tonight.”

The victory also brought the Raptors into a tie with the Chicago Bulls for the third seed. This isn’t a team scratching and clawing to end their playoff drought, they have a good shot at hosting a first-round series.

“It’s been a long road coming and you just can’t settle for making the playoffs,” DeRozan said. “We want to go in there and make a name for ourselves and go in there and complete every single day. That’s not the goal, to get in there and play an extra four games and call it a day."

The Houston Rockets attempted to trade for Kyle Lowry ahead of the deadline, according to sources.

Lowry was traded to the Toronto Raptors by the Rockets in the 2012 offseason.

Lowry has been one of the NBA's best point guards this season and will be a coveted free agent.

"I would have done things differently in Houston," Lowry said. "I really respected Kevin McHale. I wish I would have had an opportunity to play for him longer. The things he was teaching me, well, I didn't understand right away. When you get away from someone, though, see it from the outside looking in, you go back and think, 'Damn, I could've learned some more things from the guy.'

"I wanted to stay with Coach Adelman and needed to get over that. [McHale] came in with a different philosophy, and I wish I could've adapted to it quicker."

The Toronto Raptors "tried frantically" to acquire a top-15 pick in last June's draft in order to select Giannis Antetokounmpo.

John Hammond had decided 72 hours before the draft that the Milwaukee Bucks would select Antetokounmpo if he fell to them at No. 15.

Many NBA executives believed that Antetokounmpo received a promise from the Atlanta Hawks with the 17th overall pick.

Dwight Buycks has been recalled from the Bakersfield Jam of the NBA Development League by the Toronto Raptors. 

Buycks was reassigned to the Jam on March 5. He appeared in three games, totaling 61 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in 98 minutes. Buycks scored a game-high 28 points on 12-for-19 shooting from the field March 5 against the Texas Legends.

This was Buycks’ second stint in the NBA D-League this season. He is averaging 15.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 28.8 minutes in eight games (two starts) with the Jam. He has scored in double figures six times. 

The Toronto Raptors have reassigned guard Dwight Buycks to the Bakersfield Jam of the NBA Development League. Buycks will continue to be included on the Raptors’ roster and will remain on the team’s inactive list.

This is Buycks’ second stint with the Jam this season. He appeared in five games from January 4-11, averaging 12.4 points, 4.0 assists and 26.4 minutes. He scored in double figures three times, including 19 points January 4 against the L.A. D-Fenders.

Buycks has appeared in 13 games for the Raptors this season recording 41 points, 10 assists, 20 rebounds and six steals in 124 minutes. He posted a season-best 10 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals December 10 versus San Antonio.