Jonas Valanciunas hands it off to OG Anunoby who elevates at the baseline for a reverse slam.
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TORONTO – The goal was simple: After a whirlwind week where the Toronto Raptors were in the centre of the NBA storm and played five games in eight days – three of them without Kyle Lowry – just get back to winning as normal.
The Raptors did it with a return of their three-point mojo from their primary three-point maestros as Lowry and C.J. Miles combined to shoot 9-of-22 from three in Toronto’s 96-91 win. It was a pair of triples by the duo late in the fourth quarter that put a little air into a back-and-forth second half where neither team could separate itself.
It wasn’t exactly ‘normal’ in that it was a game without some of the elegant outlines the Raptors have been able draw in so many of their wins this season. It was kind of grimy and was won mainly by a lock-down defensive effort in the fourth.
But the Raptors have put together an impressive half a season by being remarkably consistent – they haven’t lost three games in a row all year — and being consistent means figuring out a way to win even when balls are bouncing off feet and not every possession comes off as scripted.
“It wasn’t a pretty win at all,” said DeMar DeRozan. “But we try to understand we don’t even want to lose two games in a row and tonight was one of them games where we could have made it three. We had to buckle down on this thing, get back to protecting home court and not lose multiple games in a row.
Lowry finished with 18 points, nine rebounds and five assists to go along with his four triples and Miles had 21 in a season-high 26 minutes as he got some rare run down the stretch as Toronto shot 42.5 per cent from the floor and made 11-of-31 threes. The production from Miles was welcome on a rare off night by DeRozan, who finished with 17 points and five turnovers as he struggled with the Pistons double teams. The Raptors held the Pistons, clinging to the eighth and final playoff spot in the tightly bunched Eastern Conference, to 42 per cent shooting – and just 18 points in the fourth.
The win improved Toronto to 30-13 and 16-3 at home, drawing it to within three games of the conference-leading Boston Celtics. The Pistons fell to 22-21.
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As exciting as the Raptors week in the spotlight was – the domination of the Cavaliers, the gutsy near-comeback against the Warriors, a scrappy afternoon against Philadelphia. – it obscured somewhat that Toronto was only 1-3 over its past four games.
In their last two starts against the Warriors and the 76ers the Raptors were undone by two lacklustre first halves, a trend Raptors head coach Dwane Casey was eager to see nipped in the bud.
“We have to come out with a sense of urgency that we haven’t had in the last three games, I would say,” Casey said before Wednesday’s game. “The Cleveland game was different but I think it probably started in the Miami game, maybe even the Brooklyn game, where we were kind of like ‘let’s feel the game out’ or ‘let’s outscore them’ mentality.”
The first quarter was just what the doctor ordered. The Raptors jumped out to a 31-18 lead with six assists on 11 field goals, totals that could have been higher had the Raptors shot better than 1-of-7 from three.
That changed in the second quarter as Miles – 4-of-16 from deep over his past two games, both Raptors losses – knocked down a pair of triples with Norm Powell coming off the bench to hit one too, none of which were as energizing as the triple big man Jonas Valanciunas hit midway through the second quarter. It was his seventh of the year and the eighth of his six-year career.
For the moment the Raptors seemed to be rolling, but things are rarely that easy.
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There was a lot of stuff going on in the arena. Wednesday night marked the NBA’s first-ever You Can Play Night. The You Can Play project is dedicated to ensuring equality, respect and safety for all who participate in sports, including LGBTQ athletes, coaches and fans.
“The Toronto Raptors are honoured to welcome fans to Air Canada Centre for the first You Can Play night,” said Raptors president Masai Ujiri. “As an organization, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment prides itself on the values of diversity, equality and inclusion and we look forward to being a part of history, together with our passionate fans and the city of Toronto.”
Before the game the Raptors and Drake announced a partnership called ‘Welcome Toronto’ where the Raptors will host six OVO branded home games and Drake and the Raptors would donate $1 million over the next four years to refurbish outdoor basketball courts around the city and a $2 million donation to Canada Basketball over the same period.
“This has been a partnership that we’ve had going on for quite some time now, and I think the key is always to grow, the key is always to evolve,” Drake said at a press conference before the game. “It’s nice to have the uniforms and the fancy court and the merchandise and stuff like that, but what was most important to me was just the call to action. I think in this day and age it’s really easy to get on social media and talk about things we’d like to see change or things we think are wrong, and then there’s an opportunity when you’re presented with one to be able to do something about it.
“So for us, my biggest thing that I’m most proud of in this partnership is the million dollars that we’re gonna be giving to the city to redo these courts and hopefully create an amazing atmosphere for anyone in that community to come out and either play casual basketball or, you know, potentially breed the next generation of Canadian basketball superstars. Which goes to, obviously, our other donation of two million dollars to Canada Basketball.”
It’s all very noble and appropriate. But the ability for the Raptors to generate excitement and awareness is increased when they’re winning. For all the energy around the team in the first half of the season, keeping their recent mini swoon – albeit against some tough competition – to a minimum felt urgent.
The Raptors struggled to put their stamp on the game after their strong start. After being up by as much as 15 in the second quarter the Raptors surrendered a 12-2 run late in the half and went into the intermission leading 54-51 after appearing to be on the verge of a blowout.
“We kind of made things difficult for ourselves instead of making the easy play,” said Casey, whose club made 21 turnovers on the night. “I thought in that stretch where we built the big lead, we did do that. We moved the ball, the ball was humming and zipping, we were passing before the traps got there. We made it complicated on ourselves but we’ve got to give Detroit credit – they were really getting into us, getting after us and doing something a little different defensively that threw our rhythm off a bit with their traps. Hats off to them.”
The two clubs started the fourth quarter tied at 73-73 after trading body blows for the third quarter, but even after the Raptors put themselves up by nine with 2:23 remaining on a pair of free-throws by Valanciunas, who finished with 17 points and 16 rebounds, Toronto still had to scare itself by surrendering a pair of late threes by Avery Bradley that made it a one-possession game with 13.4 seconds to play.
But unlike some of their recent games the Raptors were able to stem the tide, get the win and get back to their winning ways.
TORONTO — Little can represent the crushing tedium and ennui this time of year lends quite like the start of Wednesday’s game between the Detroit Pistons and Toronto Raptors, which featured two teams not so much playing basketball as fulfilling its obligations. Possessions were botched; basic rules, such as defensive three seconds and over-and-back, were violated; it took Detroit nearly eight minutes to crack double digits.
Yes, this was a bad game from the jump — the kind of let’s-all-get-through-this-without-getting-hurt contest you’ll see between two non-rival teams at this dog-days juncture of the regular season schedule. Raptors head coach Dwane Casey called it “ugly.” Delon Wright said the energy was “weird and funky.” DeMar DeRozan went with “not a pretty win at all.”
But, aesthetics be damned, it was a win. The Raptors found a way to fight through the doldrums, vanquishing the Pistons, 96-91. And in case you, too, had trouble maintaining interest in this one, here are three things to take away from an otherwise forgettable night.
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A different look
Toronto’s offence sputtered and stalled at various points throughout the game, as the Pistons trapped Raptors ball-handlers aggressively in hopes of disrupting flow at least and creating turnovers at best.
Of course, every team blitzes and traps. But the Pistons found a unique way to do it, and the Raptors looked somewhat dismayed by it, coughing up 21 turnovers. After the game, Casey made it sound like a previously hidden flaw in his team’s offence had been exposed.
“They were really getting into us. Getting after us. Doing something a little bit different defensively that kind of threw our rhythm off a little bit with traps,” he said. “It’s different. It’s just different. I don’t want to get technical. They were jumping out with one guy, and hanging another guy. And then coming back with timing. They were taking the roll guy out and you had to find the weak side. I’ll show you the film someday.”
So, even in the ugliest of games, there’s a lesson to be found. And although it’s unlikely Casey will be leading any film sessions with reporters, you can be sure that he’ll be leading one with him team to address the double-team issue and correct it.
DeRozan was the primary target of those double-teams, and coughed the ball up five times. After scoring 10 points in the first quarter, he had only seven over the rest of the game, as the Pistons threw everything they had at the Raptors star.
“They were just extremely physical,” DeRozan said. “We’ve got to be able to read that ahead of time — not feel the physicality then try to make an adjustment. We’ve got to see it before time and make our decisions quicker.”
But it wasn’t just DeRozan. Kyle Lowry, Jonas Valanciunas and Wright faced increased pressure as well, and combined for nine more turnovers. Wright said a big difference he noticed was the Pistons were trapping point guards like himself off of shooting guard screens, instead of merely switching coverage like many teams have in the past.
“It was a little different — it took us out of a lot of our stuff,” Wright said. “I just think they had a great game plan on us and kind of caught us off guard. But I think next time we play them we’ll be able to dissect it. It was the first time playing them this year.
C.J. the unaffected
While Toronto’s primary ball-handlers were fighting uphill, C.J. Miles was lurking in the corners waiting to launch. The 12-year veteran was as free-wheeling from range as he has been all season, taking 12 three-pointers and hitting five.
“Man, C.J. — he was getting them up today,” Wright said. “When he’s knocking them down, he’s one of the best shooters in the NBA. So, whenever he gets a look at the rim, everybody on the team is encouraging him to take that shot. Because he can shoot them at a high percentage.”
Miles came into the game in a slight slump, having hit four of 16 attempts from beyond the arc over his past two games. But this is what shooters do — they shoot. Whether hot or cold, they take their opportunities the same as always.
And in a game like this, when Lowry, DeRozan and Wright were under constant duress, it was particularly important for Miles to be ready to fire whenever the ball found him.
“He really spaces the floor. He allows you — if teams are double-teaming — to pick them apart. And we took advantage of that a few times,” Casey said. “They had to make a decision on whether they were going to take the roll man or the kick out. And they gave us two or three or four kick-outs. And he had 12 attempts. We did a good job of finding him, and he did a good job of knocking them down.”
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Coffee is for closers
Perhaps you’ve heard a thing or two about how the Raptors are playing an extremely different style offensively this season. It’s not only a testament to how open Toronto’s stars have been to change, but also to Casey’s coaching acumen, and his willingness to adapt when it’s called for.
But another area Casey’s been adaptable in without the fanfare has been his closing rotations. He’s been much more willing to play the hot hand late in games this season, and you saw it again on Wednesday, as he turned to a unit of Lowry, Wright, DeRozan, Miles and Valanciunas to play the final seven minutes of a still tightly-contested game.
At times this season, we haven’t always seen Wright, Valanciunas and Miles in those late-game situations for various reasons. But Casey went with his most effective group Wednesday, and watched as they helped the Raptors pull away in the end.
“It was ball-handling. Delon did a good job of helping handle the ball,” Casey said. “I liked that part of it. I thought C.J. did a good job defensively with that group against the four. And JV rebounding the ball. That group did a good job. They did what they were supposed to do.”
TORONTO — Dwane Casey wasn’t giving the Toronto Raptors any style points Wednesday night.
C.J. Miles had 21 points as Toronto pulled away for a 96-91 home win over the Detroit Pistons despite committing 21 turnovers.
"It was the ugly way," Casey said. "That team is a very aggressive team.
"They were doing something a little bit different defensively that kind of threw our rhythm off a little bit with their traps. Hats off to them because they really got after us and then we made things hard on ourselves."
Casey said Toronto did a good job in the first quarter moving the ball around before Detroit could establish its traps. The Raptors were rewarded by taking a 31-18 advantage into the second.
"I thought that stretch where we built a big lead we did do that, we did move the ball," he said. "The ball was humming, zipping, we were passing before the traps got there.
"And then as the game went on we allowed the traps to get to us before we got rid of it. We made it complicated on ourselves but again we’ve got to give Detroit credit."
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Kyle Lowry added 18 points for the Raptors, who led by as many as 15 points in the contest. DeMar DeRozan and Jonas Valanciunas both had 17 points apiece as Toronto (30-13) outscored Detroit 23-18 in the final quarter to secure its first win in three games and third straight over the Pistons.
Andre Drummond had 25 points for Detroit (22-21), which has lost three straight and four of its last five games.
"I’d say in the last three quarters we fought hard but the first quarter counts," said Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy. "There’s just not very many times where we play a good defensive first quarter.
"It’s disappointing, you’re working out of this hole and then late in the game you have a chance and we’re not up on two pick and rolls late and Lowry and Miles hit back-to-back threes … when it was winning time we didn’t do our job."
Three-pointers from Miles and Lowry gave Toronto a 90-83 advantage with 4:47 to play before Valanciunas’s two free throws boosted the lead to 92-83 with 2:23 remaining. Avery Bradley’s three-pointer pulled Detroit to within 92-86 with 1:48 left before DeRozan countered with less than a minute to play to give the Raptors a 94-88 lead.
Detroit pulled to within 94-91 on another Bradley three-pointer but Delon Wright’s two free throws with 5.9 seconds remaining gave Toronto its winning margin.
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On a night where both DeRozan and Lowry were a bit off, Miles was there to pick off the offensive slack. He was 7-of-16 from the field and 5-of-12 from three-point range.
"He really spaces the floor," Casey said. "He allows you if teams are double-teaming to pick them apart.
"We took advantage of that a few times … we did a good job of finding him and he did a good job of knocking them down."
Added Lowry: "It makes the defence not want to leave him. When he gets it going like that you just kind of know they aren’t going to leave him as much."
DeRozan said it was important for Toronto to prevent losing three straight for the first time this season.
"We don’t even want to lose two games in a row," he said. "This was one of those games where it could’ve made it three.
"We had to buckle down and understand we got to protecting our home court and not lose multiple games in a row."
Drummond’s free throw with 20 seconds left pulled Detroit into a 73-73 tie at the end of the third. The Pistons outscored Toronto 22-19 in the quarter to create the tie after Jakob Poeltl’s dunk with 32 seconds remaining gave the Raptors a 73-72 advantage.
Bradley’s driving layup with 19 seconds remaining capped a 16-7 Detroit run that cut Toronto’s half-time lead to 54-51. The Pistons made 14-of-25 shots to outscore the Raptors 33-23 in the quarter as Bradley finished the half with a team-high 11 points.
DeRozan had 10 points in the opening quarter to help stake Toronto to its 13-point lead following the first. Detroit shot 30 per cent (6 of 20) from the field and was outrebounded 17-10 as the Raptors made 11-of-26 shots (42.3 per cent) and led by as much as 15 points in the quarter.
