"We're 36-35. We're trying to get better," said coach Sam Mitchell. "Now, if someone perceives it as a message, c'est la vie. Go home and look in the mirror."

Just who is in Mitchell's crosshairs isn't hard to figure out. Anthony Parker's been giving Toronto everything it's asked of late and Mitchell went out of his way to mention that Jason Kapono's been playing hard, and well, of late.

And because the Raptors think Johnson can guard both forward positions in some situations, it would leave Jamario Moon, Carlos Delfino, Andrea Bargnani and Kris Humphries as guys he might supplant.

Johnson didn't play in his Raptors' debut but Mitchell said he hopes to get him in a game sooner rather than later, another sign of some dissatisfaction with the current crop.

RAPTORS 103, KNICKS 95: Overwhelming a much smaller frontcourt at both ends, Chris Bosh, Rasho Nesterovic and Andrea Bargnani helped carry Toronto to a workmanlike win that was not flashy but one that was necessary in the cauldron of a race for playoff positioning.

Bosh had another of his economical nights, just 17 field goal attempts that produced 29 points to go along with 10 rebounds.

Nesterovic had his eighth game in a row of double-digit scoring, pouring in 18 points to go along with eight assists while the up-and-down Bargnani, emboldened by the fact the Knicks had no interior defense to make his drives to the basket the least bit physical, had 12 points in his 22 minutes of work.

And while Anthony Parker added 15 points and Carlos Delfino had nine, the Raptors needed their big men to subdue an over-matched Knicks team that -- to its credit -- kept playing hard until the final minutes.