Los Angeles  - Unhappy with their slow start, the Toronto Raptors fired coach Sam Mitchell on Wednesday, replacing him with assistant Jay Triano on an interim basis.

"This is a difficult but necessary step the franchise must take," Raptors President and general manager Bryan Colangelo said in a statement on the team's website. "We appreciate all that Sam has done for the organization. We applaud him for his successes and wish him nothing but the best with his future in basketball."

Mitchell's dismissal comes after the Raptors suffered an embarrassing, 132-93 road loss to the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night.

"Obviously, last night's game was just an absolute kick to the gut," Colangelo said. "When you look back, it's a culmination of things. Expectations are high. We want to win."

After acquiring quality big man Jermaine O'Neal in an off-season trade to join All-Star forward Chris Bosh up front, and handing the point guard position over to Spain's Jose Calderon, the Raptors were expecting to become a powerhouse in the Eastern Conference.

While Bosh is having an MVP-type season, O'Neal and Calderon have been in and out of the lineup due to nagging injuries, and the Raptors have struggled to a mediocre
8-9 mark.

Named the NBA coach of the year in 2007, Mitchell compiled a 156- 189 record in his four-plus seasons as Raptors' head coach, including playoff appearances the last two years.

"I have a lot to be thankful for. They really gave me the opportunity to have a career in coaching, something I always wanted to do after I played," Mitchell told Canadian sports network TSN.

"So, yeah, it's a disappointment that I really wasn't given the chance to finish what I started. But you know what? I feel like I accomplished a lot of good things. I think the players that played for me all got better."

In his seventh season as a member of the Raptors' coaching staff, Triano will make his head coaching debut on Friday night when the Toronto visits the Utah Jazz.

Mitchell becomes the third coach to receive a pink slip already this season, after Oklahoma City fired PJ Carlesimo and Washington relieved Eddie Jordan of his duties. (dpa)