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TSN Raptors Reporter

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TORONTO - To say that DeMarre Carroll's first year as a Raptor hasn't exactly gone according to plan is an understatement.

Despite his positive outlook in all things related or un-related to basketball and, of course, the generous raise he received last summer, the hard-nosed forward hasn't had much to smile about.

The Raptors' big off-season addition, Carroll was brought in to help take this team to the next level and repair their tarnished defensive reputation, and while they've accomplished many of those goals he's been forced to watch most of it from the sideline.

"It was frustrating," admitted Carroll, who's missed 55 games this season, including 42 straight after undergoing knee surgery in early January. "It was my first time ever going through something of that nature."

With a greater appreciation for what goes into a lengthy rehab process - the patience, the hard work, the mental and physical obstacles - he's back to his old self off the court as he gets closer and closer to being at full strength on it.

Carroll finally returned to Toronto's lineup last week, logging 14 productive minutes against his former team in Atlanta. After sitting out in the second game of a back-to-back on Friday, a precautionary measure, he was out there again on Sunday, playing 17 minutes in New York.

The early returns have been positive. Carroll has looked good, totalling 10 points, six rebounds and five steals while knocking down both of his three-point attempts. True to form, he's been active, particularly on defence, and opportunistic but, most importantly, he insists that he's feeling more comfortable after each outing.

"It actually felt good," the 29-year-old said after practice on Monday. "It felt like I'm moving good, I'm getting down in the defensive stance good. Everything, I feel is great, now it's just about trying to do it for a longer period of time."

Carroll was on a minutes cap in each of his first two games back, which will likely be the case again this week as he's expected to appear in one of Toronto's final two contests, a back-to-back at home to Philadelphia Tuesday and in Brooklyn on Wednesday. He could see the restriction raised to around 20 minutes in that last post-season tune-up, however he's hopeful it will be lifted altogether once the first round begins this coming weekend.

For all the frustration that has come out of this lost season for Carroll, Masai Ujiri didn't recruit him to Toronto with January, February or March in mind. There's still time to put his stamp on this Raptors team and, even at less than 100 per cent, he can have a real impact on their playoff fortunes. The question is: how big of a role will he be permitted to play?

"Knowing Coach [Dwane] Casey, once the playoffs start all that minute restriction [stuff is] going to go out the door because it's your season, do or die," said Carroll. "I think right now they're just trying to be conservative, get me back in rhythm but the way I play and my style of game is nothing but defence. I'm going to really be a key for this team on the defensive end, trying to slow down guys like LeBron [James] and Paul George."

That decision is not necessarily Carroll's to make, or Casey's for that matter, at least not entirely. There are a host of people who have had and will continue to have a say in Carroll's recovery, including the team's highly regarded medical staff, Ujiri and the front office, as well as the player's own representation.

"It's like five people in one room," Carroll joked. "If one person says no, they all say no. So it's going to be up to a lot of guys and we'll see what happens when it gets closer to playoff time."

Carroll has said he hopes to play 25-30 minutes in the playoffs, which would be 5-10 fewer than his early-season workload, before the injuries hit, and even that's an optimistic forecast considering how long he's been out.

Yes, for a team that has failed to advance past the first round in each of the past two years, the stakes will be high but with Carroll signed on for another three seasons it would be ill-advised to risk his long-term health, and the team knows that. With the recent emergence of Norman Powell, they can afford to be cautious in regards to Carroll's usage. At the very least, you can expect them to play it by ear and let his progress dictate their plan of action.

"Believe me, he wants to be out there and we want him out there," Casey said. "But he has to listen to his body, he has to listen to the medical people because everybody here has his best interest at heart, which in turn is going to have our interests at heart."

"We just have to be prudent with it. As much as we want to ramp his minutes up quickly it's just not smart to do and as bad as I want him out there I'm not going to override that no matter when it is, whether it's these next couple of games or if it's the first couple of the playoffs. We've got to be smart and look at the long-term picture of his health."