Sunday evening’s Toronto Raptors game had a few implications. It was the second game of a four-game homestand, the first night of a home back-to-back, and a chance for the Raptors to win their seventh
game in a row. Even better for their chances was the fact that they were playing the 3-12 Brooklyn Nets, even if they had just won against Boston in their last game.
Before the game, Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic made it clear that they do not let things like their opponents’ records to change their strategy. “We are playing in the best league in the world,” Rajakovic said,“ We respect [our opponents], and we will go out there and compete to the best of our ability.”
The Raptors were missing Jakob Poeltl, on rest to manage for the first night of the back-to-back. He has struggled with a back injury this season, and keeping him out against Brooklyn was more of a precaution.
It seems like this current Raptors team is answering so many of the questions held onto them in the first weeks of the season. Any doubts on them have been essentially eradicated as this team has found its footing in the NBA this season. They are proving themselves league-wide by being one of the top teams in their conference and also being the first team in the league to clinch a spot in the NBA Cup knockout rounds.
Struggles are still going to come, though, as was represented in this game against the Nets. The Raptors have four games in six nights this week, and this is the first game in a back-to-back. RJ Barrett went out in the third quarter and was soon diagnosed with a right knee sprain, making him miss the rest of the game. Barnes and Ingram both had slower games through three quarters, making it so the Nets were always right there behind them.
Yet, even amidst struggle, this team is still incredibly fun to watch. It was a fantastic clutch-game performance that bolstered the Raptors to their seventh-straight win, proving this team is the real deal even when it takes a little longer to get there. Toronto got the win 119-109 over Brooklyn.
It was the bench that really held the Raptors together for a lot of the game, with Ja’Kobe Walter scoring 16 points off the bench through the first three quarters. Until the starters found their rhythm in the fourth, it was really those second-unit guys who held the team up. With Barrett out, Jamal Shead played more in the fourth, and the Raptors went to the two-point guard lineup of Shead and Quickley that has proved to be productive over the past few weeks.
“That’s what we expect from our bench,” said Rajakovic after the game.
The Raptors have been forced to perform in clutch game situations — less than five-point deficits with under five minutes to go — a few times in the past few weeks. Each time, they’ve been able to hold strong. Tonight’s win brings them to 5-2 in clutch games this season. Tonight, it was Immanuel Quickley who showed out in those last few minutes, making several shots that ended up being key to the Raptors’ winning the game.
In the end, all five starters scored in double-digits, leading the Raptors to a win in a game that seemed just a little harder than some of the others they have played in the past few weeks. This resilience is the real test, though, and being able to play through it makes the Raptors tougher.
“I thought [Ingram] made a few key plays there offensively,” Rajakovic said about the Raptors’ ability to push through.
Ingram was not the team’s highest scorer tonight, but he came through when the team needed him. It was Ingram who made the shot to bring the Raptors up 102-100 over the Nets, and then he assisted one og Immanuel Quickley’s shots to pull the Raptors away for good. Ingram also scored his 10,000th career point tonight, making him the fastest player in his draft class to reach that milestone (512 games).
Now with seven consecutive wins in a row under their belts, the Raptors will be tested again tomorrow when the Cavaliers are in town. It will be the second night of a back-to-back for both teams, which brings the chance for… wild hoops.
