TORONTO - In the middle of a tough week of training, and with a roster full of new faces, the Toronto Raptors skipped practice and went bowling Tuesday.

"The one thing that we need to do is build a trust amongst each other," Raptors coach Jay Triano said afterward. "There are going to be tough times and there are going to be good times, and we've got to make sure our guys stick together through all of it.

"That's what today was, these guys coming together as a team and giving them a little bit of a break from a hard workout yesterday and prepare them for tomorrow's workout."

The Raptors (2-5) don't play again until Friday when they face the Minnesota Timberwolves in Sioux Falls, S.D., their pre-season finale. They host the Cleveland Cavaliers in their regular-season opener on Oct. 28.

With nine new faces on the roster this season, Triano is cherishing these few game-free days to develop some unity among his team, both on the court and off.

"I would have liked to have done something like paintball, but we can't afford doing silly stuff right now," Triano said. "We figured bowling was a good enough thing where we could get out and be competitive, create a couple of rivalries, talk, laugh at each other, and have a little bit of a competition as well."

The coach wouldn't divulge who won, but Italian newcomer Marco Belinelli bowled a 157 in his first-ever game.

Reggie Evans, who's sidelined for the rest of the pre-season with an ankle sprain, was the only player that didn't participate, staying back at the Air Canada Centre for treatment.

Triano said the players, several of whom were heading to the gym later Tuesday for some light shooting, welcomed the bowling break.

"Francesco Cuzzolin (the Raptors new strength and conditioning coach) is very good at when we get rest and when we can work hard and that's why we went hard and long (Monday)," Triano said. "And we know we've got a really hard practice again (Wednesday), but you can't go three straight days really hard without the body starting to break down."

Antoine Wright, who has yet to play this pre-season, practised Monday and Triano said his injured knee was feeling no ill effects a day later.