The last time the Toronto Raptors visited the AT&T Center, bedlam ensued.

A sold-out crowd, thirsty for blood that was hopefully only metaphorical, booed lustily from the opening tap. Fans taunted and jeered, and at the end of a 125-107 Spurs victory on Jan. 2, 2019, that stood as the most satisfying of last season, they erupted in raucous, sneering applause.

DeMar DeRozan, a Raptors castoff who recorded what remains the only triple-double of his All-Star career that night, remembers the occasion well.

It was extremely fun, DeRozan said.

Of course, most of the juice that night was supplied by the return of Toronto forward Kawhi Leonard, who the summer before had spurned the Spurs and orchestrated a trade that landed him north of the border.

As the Raptors return to San Antonio on Sunday afternoon, Leonard will be 1,300 miles away in Los Angeles, preparing to lead his newest new team, the Clippers, in a game against Orlando.

Facing the defending NBA champion Raptors sans last seasons Finals MVP, the Spurs will be left to manufacture their own motivation.

That often has been easier said than done this season for a Spurs team that cant seem to piece together a winning streak longer than three games.

Weve just got to be consistent, guard Derrick White said. Thats been the moral of the story all year. Just consistency and being ready to play whoever is out there in front of us.

The past three weeks have been an exercise in head-scratching for a Spurs squad that has shown both the ability to beat some of the best teams in the league and lose to some of the worst.

In that span, the Spurs have beaten each of the top four clubs in the Eastern Conference, including a 105-104 victory in Toronto that involved a comeback from 18 points down.

They also have dropped narrow decisions at home to Atlanta and Phoenix, teams that would be lottery-bound if the postseason began today.

Victories over the leagues upper crust have allowed the Spurs to remain firmly in the mix for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Losses to the leagues dregs have kept them from running away with it.

I think we are learning stuff every game, guard Patty Mills said. No matter if we win or lose, there is stuff we are finding out about ourselves as a group. We talk about putting it in the bank, and at some point it will pay off in the long run.

Against the Suns, the Spurs lost 103-99 mostly because they couldnt find a way to make the ball go in the basket.

The Spurs finished 5 of 25 from the 3-point line, including 1 of 7 in the fourth quarter.

It was a far cry from the 17 of 31 the Spurs buried Monday night in Phoenix on the way to a 120-118 victory.

The Spurs 3-point clang-a-thon against Phoenix represented their worst shooting night from distance since a Nov. 27 loss at Minnesota, when they converted only 17 percent.

All told, it resulted in the end of a three-game winning streak, one victory shy of a season high.

If we hit those 3s, its a different story, White said.

In the meantime, the Spurs aim to control what is controllable.

Coach Gregg Popovich continues to cajole his team into approaching each game with the same focus. Appropriate fear, he calls it.

Weve never concentrated on one game, Popovich said. Its always about getting better, executing and competing for more of the 48 minutes than your opponent. Thats your goal every single night. It doesnt matter who you are playing.

It might not hurt the Spurs attention span that the Raptors even with Leonard plying his All-Star trade in sunny California remain a good team.

Second-year coach Nick Nurse has kept Toronto in the thick of the Eastern Conference race, tied for second with Miami at 31-14.

The Raptors enter today on a six-game winning streak, which roughly coincides with All-Star forward Pascal Siakams return from the injured list. Toronto hasnt lost since Jan. 12, when the Spurs absconded from Canada with a one-point triumph.

Were just ... comfortable in every situation, Toronto point guard Kyle Lowry said. We understand what to do, and weve been here before.

The Spurs are expecting Torontos best shot, much as they took Phoenixs best shot Friday.

Four days after the Spurs squeaked out a two-point win on the Suns home floor, Phoenix held on for a four-point revenge triumph at the AT&T Center.

The Suns were clearly motivated, DeRozan said.

Small things like that you dont forget as a team, and you try to come out (the next time) and you want to get a victory, said DeRozan, who scored 30 points in the loss. Thats the league. Any given night, especially when you are fresh off playing a team, they are going to be ready.

The Raptors, like the Suns, owe the Spurs one.

Two weeks ago at Scotiabank Arena, the Raptors led by as many as 18 points in the third quarter and 82-69 headed to the fourth.

A 19-5 run to start the fourth quarter led mostly be DeRozan, who finished with 25 points in his second return to Toronto helped lift the Spurs to an improbable victory.

At the time, it seemed as if that would be the latest stirring outing that would at last allow the Spurs to turn a season-long corner.

Two nights later, they dropped a 106-100 decision at Miami. Two nights after that, the basement-dwelling Hawks stole a 121-120 win at the AT&T Center.

For the searching Spurs, todays game against Toronto could be a jumping-off point. Again.

We just played them, and they are going to try to come in and beat us on our home floor, DeRozan said. All these games are important now. Weve got to be ready to go from the jump.

jmcdonald@express-news.net

Twitter: @JMcDonald_SAEN

Jeff McDonald began covering the Spurs for the San Antonio Express-News in September 2007, three months after the team's fourth championship.

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San Antonio Spurs face new challenge in healthy, motivated Toronto Raptors - San Antonio Express-News