Raptors forwards Chris Bosh, left, and Shawn Marion have been unimpressed of late with the team's performance. (Nathan Denette/Canadian Press)

While the NBA playoffs remain a longshot for the Toronto Raptors, it hasn't stopped top forwards Chris Bosh and Shawn Marion from calling for better play from their teammates.

Both took time at yesterday's workout to reflect on the team's most recent performance, Friday's 127-97 defeat at the hands of the New York Knicks, who visit Toronto on Sunday (CBC Sports, noon ET) to complete the home-and-home set.

"I'm pissed off," Marion told reporters, just days after arriving in a trade with the Miami Heat. "And I want them [his teammates] to be pissed off. If I have to motivate guys, fire them up, I'll do it because we have a long way to go."

The Raptors sit 14th in the Eastern Conference with a 21-36 record, 5½ games behind Milwaukee for the final playoff berth — with five other teams in between.

Regardless, Bosh, who played close to 31 minutes on Friday in his return from a knee injury, would like to see his team play with the same purpose and intensity he has seen at practice.

"Obviously, I want us to practise well, and I think that's very important, but we have to transfer it into games," said Bosh, the NBA's ninth-leading scorer this season with an average 22.5 points per game.

"We've had great practices and gone out and got smashed."

It was the Knicks who came out with purpose on Friday, shooting 73 per cent from the field in building a 42-22 lead after the first quarter.

"We have to communicate," Marion said. "We have to compete. We allowed them to hit shots and we were like at the bottom of a pit trying to climb out of a hole to see the top of it. We have to be ready."

Marion had 14 points and 12 rebounds against the Knicks in his second game with the Raptors, who have dropped two in a row and eight of 10. Bosh added 12 points and was 4-for-13 from the field.

At 23-31, New York enters Sunday's contest three spots ahead of Toronto in the East standings and two points behind Milwaukee.

A Knicks victory would halt an eight-game road losing streak versus the Raptors.

Head coach Mike D'Antoni would like to get a look at guard Larry Hughes and forward Chris Wilcox, who were added prior to Thursday's trade deadline from Chicago and Oklahoma City respectively.

Wilcox was held out of Friday's game following a long travel week, while Hughes hasn't played since Jan. 12, having fallen out of favour with the Bulls. He has averaged 14.7 points in his 11-year career.

In his first season with New York, D'Antoni and the offensive style he has implemented have given hope to a team that has had one post-season appearance since a first-round loss to Toronto in 2001.

The Knicks have been particularly poor against the Raptors in recent years, losing 11 of 14 meetings prior to Friday's triumph.

In their favour is Toronto's lowly 10-16 record at the Air Canada Centre. The Raptors have also allowed 100.1 points per game on the season and host a New York club that averages 105.6 points per outing.

With files from the Associated Press