Toronto's Chris Bosh had 30 points and 17 rebounds but it wasn't enough to beat the visiting Phoenix Suns, who defeated the Raptors 113-94 on Sunday afternoon.
It was Toronto's 12th straight loss to Phoenix, who beat the Raptors 101-100 on Nov. 15.
Bosh took a bite of the net throughout the game, continually pushing against the Suns defence for all the shots he could get.
Toronto (7-11) were behind eight pointsd after the first quarter, with the rest of the Raptors supporting Bosh better in the second and third quarters.
"We just missed shots," Bosh said.
"Collectively, we could be more aggressive trying to get to the basket and trying to get offensive rebounds … just step in there and do things that will get the crowd into it and give us opportunities to score."
Defensive troubles have been the reason for recent Raptor losses, and their defence didn't fare much better against the powerful Suns.
The Raptors did better in the second quarter, only giving up 17 points.
Toronto's Jarrett Jack joined Bosh in the second, flipping in two driving layups. He also claimed four points in the third and two in the fourth.
Hedo Turkoglu's suddenly hard-hitting presence in the third quarter beefed up Toronto's offensive effort.
Turkoglu spent much of the game taking long, high shots and finally stepped up with several driving layups at the net. He scored.
Toronto's Andrea Bargnani, DeMar De Rozan, Amir Johnson and Pops Mensah-Bonsu also snagged some key points throughout the game.
Bargnani netted 24 points and De Rozan had 14.
But their efforts weren't enough to keep the Raptors level with Steve Nash and his surging Suns (14-3), which countered every time Toronto seemed to be gaining.
"We went under, we trapped, we tried everything we could," Raptors coach Jay Triano said of defending Nash.
"I think for the most part we surprised him on the first possession of each change defensively, they either missed or we got the ball.
"But the second time he recognizes what you did and when you have a veteran who has been around and seen every coverage, he is going to make adjustments."
The 35-year-old Nash picked up 20 points and 16 assists. Before Sunday's game, he led the league, averaging 11.8 assists per game.
"It takes a lot of preparation as you get older to stay fit and stay sharp so it was a lot of sacrifice, but I'm willing to do that because I love playing, I love winning, and I love being part of the team," Nash said.
Phoenix is the NBA's only team to hit triple digits in every game this season.
With files from The Canadian Press
