CLEVELAND (AP) — Raptors point guard Immanuel Quickley missed Toronto's 126-113 loss to Cleveland in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference first-round series on Saturday because of a mild right hamstring strain.
Quickley suffered the injury during the Raptors’ regular-season finale against Brooklyn. Jamal Shead started in place of Quickley and scored 17 points, but coach Darko Rajakovic said Quickley's absence was felt.
“We missed Quickley big time with
the way he gets us organized and his shooting helps our team out," Rajakovic said. "I like Jamal’s defense and what we need on the court. We wanted to have multiple ball handlers on the floor with Jamal.”
Toronto committed 18 turnovers that resulted in 22 points by Cleveland. The Raptors came into the game leading the league in fast-break points, averaging 18.9 points per game, but they had a season-low three on Saturday.
Quickley led the Raptors with 178 3-pointers during the regular season, but Shead picked up the slack from beyond the arc by making a career-high five.
“Our biggest problem was our 17 turnovers. We had a lot of situations where we were careless with the ball," Rajakovic said. "They won the possession battle. And in transition, I thought we did a very, very poor job.”
Quickley averaged 16.4 points, a career-high 5.9 assists and 4.0 rebounds in 70 regular-season games. The five-year veteran has scored at least 20 points in 20 games and recorded eight double-doubles.
Rajakovic said Quickley was making progress and didn't rule him out for Game 2 on Monday. Quickley also missed eight games from March 23 to April 5 because of plantar fasciitis in his right foot.
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