This Toronto Raptors season has been full of franchise records, new achievements, and lots of growth. Now it is the playoffs and off their historic Game 1 victory, the Raptors look to make history by going 2-0 for the first time in franchise history. The last game the two teams went toe-to-toe before the Raptors ended up sealing the game with big plays down the stretch. This time both teams have gone through the film and had a couple days to analyse what they will like to change going forward. Game 2 in the Air Canada Centre with the Raptors leading 1-0.
The Toronto Raptors had what most people would say is a perfect start. They came out firing on all cylinders and hit the Wizards in the mouth first. In the midst of the Raptors raining a franchise-record 7 threes in the first quarter, both Wall and Beal picked up two quick fouls and sat on the bench. The top-heavy Washington Wizards had to reach into their bench and try to hold off the barrage until the second quarter. The Raptors were moving the ball, creating high percentage shots, and defending at a high level. DeRozan led the charge with 13 points in the first quarter, but Lowry set the tempo and pace. The pit-bull came out in the first quarter and decided we are not going to be the boxing bag, instead we will be the boxer. The Raptors threw their best punches in the first quarter and led 44-27 after 12 minutes. The 44 points was a playoff franchise-record for most points in a quarter.
Today was the return of Fred VanVleet and he started along with his bench mates in the second quarter. Unfortunately, the return of Fred VanVleet was cut short as he seemed tentative and not 100% healthy when he was on the court. Casey decided to give him more rest and put Norman in for him after about 3 minutes. VV took a bad shot and a careless turnover. But it was the way he was playing that seemed off and not typical of what the Toronto Raptors expect from the captain of the Bench Mob.
The Bench Mob in the second quarter did not play well. They struggled to produce consecutive stops on the defensive end. Ty Lawson and Mike Scott were able to get anything they wanted offensively against the bench. CJ Miles was on point again and was shooting the ball confidently. Dwane Casey had to put back his starters earlier than he normally does. The starters were playing faster and more decisive than the bench as they pushed the 14-point lead to 22 in a blink of an eye. Both teams continued to trade blows throughout the quarter. Casey went with Bebe in for JV for the last 1:42 in the quarter. Bebe earned these minutes after performing excellently the game before, but in this game he struggled. He committed two turnovers and fouled Wall leading to 2 points. But the Raptors did manage to take a 76-58 lead going into the second half of Game 2. DeRozan was the leading scorer with 20 points and Valanciunas picked up a double-double in the first half. Beal picked up his third foul with less than 3 minutes left in the second quarter.
The Wizards were not in sync but this game could have been completely out of hand if it wasn’t for the Wizards’ bench. Oubre, Lawson and Scott led their bench with energy and aggressiveness to keep the game relatively close for the beginning of the second quarter. In the third quarter, the Wizards came out strong early and went on a 7-0 run. Kyle Lowry was able to settle the pressure by creating plays to get Ibaka and JV easy shots. Not soon after Lowry gets fouled on a 3-point shot by who else, Bradley Beal, and hits the bench with 4 personal fouls. Both teams were trading baskets back and forth, but the turnovers for Toronto started to pile up. John Wall started to get going as soon as Beal hit the bench and was unstoppable attacking the rim. Toronto did not hit a three in the third quarter and the Wizards led by John Wall cut the lead to 10 going into the fourth. John Wall had 14 points in the third quarter and got himself into a nice rhythm. Not a good sign for the Raptors.
The fourth quarter began with the bench on the floor, but Dwane Casey elected to go with Lorenzo Brown in the backcourt along with Delon Wright. Scott Brooks wanted to keep going with the momentum and started Beal and Wall at the beginning of the fourth quarter. The offense was stagnant before Lorenzo Brown drives and finds Siakam for the and-1 dunk. The Wizards continued to respond and Casey had Lowry subbed back into the game earlier than usual. John Wall and the Wizards were not backing down and knocked down threes constantly. Mike Scott and Ty Lawson were knocking down shots all game long that it allowed Wall to have huge driving lanes and score for himself. Lowry gets called for the offensive foul and Wall hits a couple free throws to cut the lead to just 5. The Raptors’ 23-point lead in this game was chipped away slowly and now was at 2 possession game.
The biggest shot of the game came right after this moment. With the shot clock running down and the offense stagnant, CJ Miles pulled up from deep and knocked down the cold-blooded three right in front of John Wall. After that huge three, the Raptors settled down and went back to work. DeRozan closed the Wizards off with his aggressiveness and shot-making. The Raptors continued to make plays on the defensive end after that and this game was blown open. Serge Ibaka and Delon Wright were huge on the defensive end. The dagger was the Delon deflection, DeRozan hustle, Lowry alley-oop to Delon Wright. Toronto were able to withstand Washington’s best punch and respond. If CJ Miles does not make that three, we could be talking about a different result. The Raptors take Game 2 and go up 2-0 in the series for the first time in franchise history.
Toronto Raptors Washington Wizards
130 119
Raptors Lead 2-0
Player of the Game
DeMar DeRozan
37 minutes, 37 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks, 2 turnovers, 14-23 shooting, 6-8 FT, 3-6 3PT, +23
Kyle Lowry
36 minutes, 13 points, 7 rebounds, 12 assists, 1 steal, 0 blocks, 3 turnovers, 3-10 shooting, 1-8 3PT, 6-7 FT, +27
Both All-Stars were spectacular when needed most. The first quarter is where DeRozan did most of his damage with 13 in the first 12 minutes, but he continued his offensive dominance throughout the game and closed off any hopes of Wizards’ comeback. On the other hand, Lowry was amazing throughout the game with his play-making, stingy defense and rebounding. Lowry is one of the better rebounders on this roster and his 7 rebounds shows why. After DeRozan shot a dismal 6-17 in Game 1, he responded with an efficient 14-23 shooting night. Good night from both guys, but Lowry has yet to find his touch from the outside and has gone 2/12 from three in the past two games. As long as we get wins, I have no complaints.
Things To Take Away From This Game
1. Coaching
Dwane Casey tried to get VanVleet some minutes in this game but he did not like right. He had a bad turnover and a bad shot in 3 minutes of action. VV looked slow out on the court and did not have that burst he had when he was healthy. Casey wanted to give him more rest. Casey’s substitutions in this game were impeccable as he knew the bench was struggling and did not hesitate to throw in this starters. Also, was able to go 13 guys deep into the bench and got everyone some precious playoff minutes. Scott Brooks went small in the second half which forced Casey to take out JV which was the correct move. Both coaches were having a chess match, but Casey wins this battle.
2. Stars
The Raptor stars shined bright in Game 2 and Washington only had one star show up. Beal was completely taken out of the game with foul trouble and even when he had open shots, he had no rhythm in the entire game and could not get anything to drop. He finished the game with a playoff career-low 9 points, but John Wall carried the team. Wall dropped 14 in that third quarter and led a huge comeback to cut the Raptor lead to 5 before the Raptors woke up and closed it out. DeMar had a strong 37 points on efficient shooting and Lowry had a complete floor game and was 3 rebounds away from the triple-double. It will be interesting to see if the Raptors can carry that momentum into Game 3.
3. Bench
A big reason why this Toronto Raptors team was successful in the regular season was their bench. But the bench has yet to wake up and give the Raptors valuable minutes. Delon Wright and CJ Miles have been solid in both games and have played key 4th quarter minutes. Other than these two, the Bench Mob has not given enough on either end of the floor consistently. The entire bench was a negative net rating and hopefully VanVleet can come back 100% and spark the bench back to its usual productivity.
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