Raptors’ Brandon Ingram makes tough admission amid 1-4 stretch

The Toronto Raptors are stumbling at the exact moment they need to be sprinting. After a disappointing 122-111 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night, All-Star forward Brandon Ingram didn’t mince words about the team’s current state.

Returning to the city where he spent six seasons, Ingram put up a valiant effort, finishing with 22 points, six rebounds, and five assists. He even reached a major milestone, surpassing 11,000 career points during the contest. However, his individual success couldn’t mask the collective struggle of a Raptors squad that has now dropped six of its last eight games.

“We’re going through a little rough patch,” Ingram admitted after the game. “But I think that’s going to make us come together even more. We just got to figure it out. Figure out what’s best for us offensively and defensively, and just play a little harder.”

Brandon Ingram on if the team is matching the urgency/intensity needed at this point of the season, where the standings are constantly changing:

“We’re going through a little rough patch. But I think that’s going to make us come together even more. We just got to figure it out.… https://t.co/a3oWc4HE3d pic.twitter.com/5SevdZ3MXS

— Omer Osman (@OmerOsman200) March 12, 2026

The “rough patch” is proving costly in a crowded Eastern Conference. This latest defeat slid Toronto from the fifth seed down to seventh, leaving them a half-game behind both the Orlando Magic and Miami Heat. Despite 25 points from Immanuel Quickley and a gritty showing from Scottie Barnes, the Raptors couldn’t contain New Orleans’ duo of Trey Murphy III and Dejounte Murray.

Murphy caught fire from deep, scoring 28 points on 5-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc, while Murray added 27 to spoil Ingram’s homecoming. The Raptors struggled with efficiency, shooting just 31.8 percent from downtown compared to the Pelicans’ blistering 48.3 percent.

Toronto briefly cut an 18-point deficit to just two early in the fourth quarter, but a lack of defensive urgency allowed the Pelicans to pull away with an 8-0 run. For a team with championship aspirations, the margin for error has officially evaporated. If Ingram and the Raptors don’t “figure it out” soon, they might find themselves fighting just to stay out of the Play-In tournament.

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