Reaction: Raptors 107, Pelicans 100

by William Lou March 19, 2014

Follow @william_lou

Raptors fall behind early, but unlikely heroes bail them out down the stretch.

Toronto Raptors

107

FinalRecap | Box Score

100

New Orleans Pelicans

	Amir Johnson, PF Shot Chart 35 MIN \| 8-13 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 9 REB \| 2 AST \| 1 STL \| 2 BLK \| 0 TO \| 17 PTS \| +14A step slow defensively, but he made up for it by scoring well on put-backs and pick-and-rolls. Found some rhythm in a lineup with de Colo. Given that he was the only defensively functional big on the roster tonight, I thought he did alright. He needs to get fully healthy for the playoffs.
	Tyler Hansbrough, PF Shot Chart 36 MIN \| 3-8 FG \| 1-1 FT \| 13 REB \| 0 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 1 TO \| 7 PTS \| +8Brought the hustle, but not the defense. Abused by Alexis Ajinca and quite frankly, was outplayed by Jeff Withey. As compared to his counterparts, Hansbrough was giving up some height. but he could have fared better in defending the pick-and-roll. All in all, given the short rotation of bigs, he was adequate.
	Terrence Ross, SF Shot Chart 17 MIN \| 3-9 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 2 REB \| 1 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 0 TO \| 6 PTS \| -15Found himself in foul trouble in a game in which the Raptors really needed his contribution on either end of the floor. He was entasked to lead the second unit for a while, which provided some less-than-satisfactory results. Had one nice drive off-the-dribble. This is how development happens on a good team — he’s going to need to learn on the fly.
	Kyle Lowry, PG Shot Chart 37 MIN \| 6-18 FG \| 8-10 FT \| 8 REB \| 5 AST \| 2 STL \| 0 BLK \| 6 TO \| 23 PTS \| +10Noticeably slow on defense, which makes sense given his plethora of injuries that he’s sustained of late, but how could you argue with that boxscore line? He and DeRozan were the only sources of consistent offense in tonight’s game, which makes tonight every other night this season.
	DeMar DeRozan, SG Shot Chart 39 MIN \| 9-19 FG \| 11-13 FT \| 3 REB \| 4 AST \| 3 STL \| 0 BLK \| 1 TO \| 31 PTS \| +6Look what happens when you attack the basket! In the first half, he had 25 points on a great field goal percentage because he was aggressive, and tonight, his free-throw total was legitimate. Tailed off in the second half and started settling for jumpers, but overall he kept the Raptors within striking distance for much of the first three quarters.
	Chuck Hayes, PF Shot Chart 18 MIN \| 2-6 FG \| 1-1 FT \| 8 REB \| 2 AST \| 1 STL \| 1 BLK \| 0 TO \| 5 PTS \| -2Really, really, really ineffective. See my blurb below.
	John Salmons, SF Shot Chart 19 MIN \| 1-5 FG \| 1-2 FT \| 1 REB \| 0 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 2 TO \| 4 PTS \| -3On the second night of back-to-backs, Salmons cannot be counted upon to provide anything of value, and he didn’t. Again, he’s going to counted on as a consistent performer in the playoffs. Sigh.
	Steve Novak, SF Shot Chart 4 MIN \| 0-0 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 0 REB \| 0 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 0 TO \| 0 PTS \| +1Weird that he didn’t get more minutes, especially when the Raptors were hurting for offense. I guess Withey and Ajinca would have eaten him alive on the glass, but it couldn’t hurt to stretch the floor when Hayes/Hansbrough is clogging things up on the inside. Incomplete because he wasn’t used.
	Greivis Vasquez, PG Shot Chart 21 MIN \| 4-7 FG \| 4-5 FT \| 2 REB \| 3 AST \| 0 STL \| 1 BLK \| 1 TO \| 14 PTS \| +3He bailed us out tonight. With the game tied late in the fourth, Vasquez scored five straight points on back-to-back possessions and gave the Raps the lead for good. He took his fair share of YOLO (patented) shots, but this is a team represented by Drake, so what did you really expect?
	Nando de Colo, PG Shot Chart 14 MIN \| 0-1 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 2 REB \| 3 AST \| 1 STL \| 1 BLK \| 0 TO \| 0 PTS \| +13He’s the new Landry Fields. Played solid defense, made smart (yet plenty risky) passes, and crashed the boards to help even up the rebounding disparity. I really wouldn’t mind if he played more minutes down the stretch. The Raptors could use somebody, anybody, to help out on back-to-backs when Salmons is out of commission.
	Dwane Casey Willingly shuffled the lineup when things weren’t working, and he eventually found some lineups that worked. It must have killed him to not have a functional defensive anchoring big in the lineup tonight. Good on him to try out de Colo, which helped the Raptors erase a huge deficit in the second quarter. Couldn’t find a big to stop the pick-and-roll tonight, but not for a lack of trying, as tried different looks and personnel. Nothing worked.

Tags: new orleans pelicans, toronto raptors

Junior Qamar

Great win! Without 2pat and jv
De Colo

Great win, especially with all the injuries, but Anthony Davis didn’t play either so it all evened out.
plaid coast

amir works his ass off on the boards every night. tonight he didn’t start to collect rebounds until the 4th quarter but that’s really just a function of luck of the bounce most of the time. i think it’s kind of silly the hate he’s been getting lately, since his level of effort is usually higher than everyone not named kyle lowry.

also, Tyler Hans is killing me on the offensive end. he seems terrified of having the ball in his hands, even deep in the post. he passed up at least three close-range shots and air-balled a couple more. somebody get that guy some reps on the elbow please.
FREEJV

Can NY lose so we can clinch playoffs FUCKKKKK!!
- asifyouknow
  
  Now with the King Jackson they may win them all…lol
Age

Not since 2004 have I seen our team this committed to winning.
In the first quarter, every Raps fan thought “not this $hit again”. But this group has something special and I applaud you all (except TRoss) for the gritty effort tonight!

ps you are being harse on Hayes. he made some decent defensive moves with Amir was nursing his ankles
asifyouknow

Tonight this team showed they are a bunch of “man’s man” everyone of them from DeColo to Amir were fighting all the way.

Amir was the alpha male -TOUGH GUY – tonight, he played hard even though he was hurting. He played like a man on a mission.

Great scoring by Lowry and DeMar.

Crazy man Tyler had 13 REBOUNDS!

AND of course I can’t leave my boy out: Ay caramba que juegazo! (Look it up lol) Nothing else to say about Vasquez.

As you may know I’m a lifetime Spurs fan. I fallow Toronto because of Vasquez, but I got to tell you, this team is the most fun/entertaining team in the NBA. Period, end of story. Lucky fans in Toronto who get to go to the games.

GREAT GAME BY ALL, SOME NEGATIVE STUFF BUT THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO TALK ABOUT IT, THIS THE TIME TO ENJOY THE WIN. :0)
- plaid coast
  
  yeah i didn’t see the “step slow” amir as described above.
  - CJT
    
    especially considering how he was hurting on that bum ankle. He is a warrior. Not to mention is put back on the missed free throw put us up 3 possessions inside of a minute to play THAT was a big play.
Guest

Lowry listed as INC?
- DDayLewis
  
  Fuck. Should be an A-
FREEJV

De colo for president.
- rrwatcher
  
  Too bad casey will bury him back beside fields.
  - FREEJV
    
    Salmons has made a 3 in back to back games. That should be enough to get 30 minutes a game now hes on fire.
  - Mexiballer
    
    I think De Colo will get more playing time. Casey mentioned a couple of weeks ago that he was going to start playing him once he started to learn the system.
Colonel_Hapablapp

Don’t be fooled by this win. We got exposed tonight. Without Val clogging the middle and contesting shots, we looked woefully inept in the first half. If this had happened against any other team, we’d have been blown out the building. Thank god for Psycho T and Amir for all those late offensive rebounds that basically kept us in it. I know it’s too late to get a third centre, but if we could scrape one out of the waiver wire SOMEWHERE, then MU needs to do that.

2Pat can’t come back soon enough. We cannot heap enough praise for what he brings; a legit stretch 4 with ice water in his veins.

Also, we really need to give Fields some run. Keep Salmons on the bench during a B2B and give Fields some action.

Fix these issues, and maybe I won’t be slamming my keyboard during gametime.
- bobmasa
  
  CASEY STOP THIS NONCES, FREE LONDRY FIELDS!!!!!
  - Steverino
    
    “Nonces”???
    - Bendit
      
      ESL
- plaid coast
  
  does val really contest shots in the middle? he gets less than a block per game
  - jakdripr
    
    Most of the differences a centre makes don’t show up on the stat sheet. I’m not labelling him as the next hakeem olajuwon or anything, but having that big shadow coming up on a players shoulder leads to players rushing shots they wouldn’t normally and changing shots.
  - JCREX
    
    you dont have to have a high number of blocks to contest shots. look at howard and hibbert they only get 2 blocks a game yet contest many shots and make it hard to get into the paint. a 7 footers presence is big time
    - plaid coast
      
      you’re right. blocks aren’t the the highest currency. but i just don’t see val as a defensive presence yet. being 7 feet tall doesn’t make you a defender. look at ajinca who we just played, look at hasheem thabeet. i’m not saying val is terrible or anything. but i noticed his absence a lot more on the offensive side, that’s all.
      - smrt
        
        JV constantly works on his ‘principle of verticality’ in the paint and that definitely doesn’t show up on the stat sheet other than a few more fouls when he gets it wrong, or more notably, doesn’t get the respect from the refs when he does go up straight. But he gets it and it’ll just keep getting better. Being a great post defender is not about blocks on your stat sheet.
      - Dr. Scooby
        
        JV is still considered fresh meat and the refs blow the whistles against him often. Why do you think he does that exaggerated hands in the air thing ‘look at me refs I’m not fouling anybody. See see, my hands are straight up in the air”.
        
        He’s been forced into these asinine theatrics…at least for the time being.
  - Colonel_Hapablapp
    
    I forget the exact numbers, but the Raptors give up about 45 points in the paint per game. In the first quarter of this one, we gave up 25. Hayes was simply too slow rotating, and couldn’t even get a hand to contest a shot. JV wouldn’t have that problem.
  - Guest
    
    Do you know what contest means? It doesn’t mean block.
- Guest
  
  You should get off your keyboard during game time to focus on the game and in turn be able to make more intelligent comments. Multi-tasking is overrated. Watch them offside rotations son!!
- higdale
  
  Casey is not going to play Fields. His skillset is not suited for this jump shooting system. His skillset would be better suited for a fast pace chaotic system like the heat or a diagonal system where players are encouraged to cut without the ball for easy baskets like the spurs. The raptors have been fortunate with injuries so far this year while other teams in the east haven’t and Casey has only had to make adjustments when Ross was out for the golden state game that fields filled in for and did a good job. Now that Patterson has been out he has yet to find a combination or be creative with something that really works. He got lucky last night because Anthony Davis didn’t play but had no answer for the Suns and Hawks losses and although demar is an all star lowry is the raptors mvp. So raptor fans better hope nothing happens to him or you got big problems because Val, Ross and Demar can’t bring the ball up and pass to themselves and they don’t make other players around them better.
Rupert

Thank g-d for this win we desparately needed it with OKC on friday night derozan is really insane when he attacks the rim love it. And vasquez sometimes u make me want to cry and other times to kiss an elephant thank u!
- Steverino
  
  What the hell is g-d supposed to mean? You mean god? Or God? What does removing the ‘o’ do? You think he won’t know?
  - Eunys
    
    Ahahahahhahahahahhaha
  - GoingBig
    
    If you say god’s name, you will summon him – like Lord Voldemort
Free De Colo !

Simply, De Colo was the turning point in the game. Amazing to see how someone whose been sitting since he got here did not just jack it up or “try to get his” like others. It says a lot about the Spurs organization.
- asifyouknow
  
  Pops is the best…
  - Bendit
    
    Euro ball also has something to do with playing the right way
    - unknown_guest
      
      Like how AB plays?
- Icarus Descending
  
  The spurs style of play is just so refreshing to watch compared to the -yawn- iso ball and lazy d played by most other teams. Surprised more teams don’t attempt to emulate the obviously winning formula there.
- Guest
  
  De Colo stands out head and shoulders above every Raptor in just the way he makes his decisions and carries himself on the court. Every move seems to have a purpose, and you can see the focus in his thought process and movements. That to me is the result of building a “winning culture”, an idea that some people like to trash. Spurs clearly have no time for B.S., and they build a mentality that every possession is important.
  As confusing as Casey is at times, I think he’s done a good job beginning to build a culture of effort and concentration. Coaching in the NBA is a learning process too, and its easier to learn the x’s and o’s or improved rotations than it is to inspire people to buy into something and work together. For all those who hate Casey so much, I’d be nervous if we got a great new x’s and o’s coach who everyone tuned out and stopped trying for.
  - asifyouknow
    
    You got all that from one game? You should be a coach…
De Colo

De Colo Rises
- consmap
  
  Lead us to the promised land.
asifyouknow

Here is an idea, tell me what you think:
Casey should pick a game with two day off after it and bench Kyle and DeMar to give them a good break. Give that bench a whole game including Fields and the end of the bench. Who cares if is a loss.
- asifyouknow
  
  Hey found a game to blow:
  April fifth vs Bucks, come back April 9th vs the worse team in the NBA, Philadelphia, that would give Kyle, DeMar, Ross and maybe Amir ….5 days of rest !
  - jakdripr
    
    The nets and bulls are 2.5 and a half game behind us respectively, I don’t think we can afford to be throwing away games. I understand somethings are more important than winning and early in the season that would be true. But we’ve gone all in now and all that matters now is securing a good playoff spot, so we really can’t be giving away games imo.
    - asifyouknow
      
      3 or 4…Will it really matter in this case?
      Won’t matter how good of a spot one gets if they are all beat up.
      - Mexiballer
        
        I said that I would not respond to your ridiculous posts anymore, but I have to say, what are you talking about? The Brooklyn Nets are two and half games behind the Raptors for the division lead and the Wizards are three games back. If the Nets catch the Raptors the Raptors fall to fifth place and lose home court advantage. Please dont respond by pointing out that the Raptors have a soft schedule or any other sort of fuzzy logic. The Raptors are in a playoff fight for the Division, playoff positioning, and first round home court advantage. I thought you said you were a long time sports blogger.
        
        Abused Raptors Fan
        
        He runs Vasquez’s fan site… haha
        
        Mexiballer
        
        I was thinking he was his brother or his cousin. He keeps mentioning that he knows more about Grieves and his history than anyone else on these forums. Not something I would admit to. Maybe your right.
      - jakdripr
        
        No, 3 or 4 won’t make much of a difference, but 5 or 6 would, and that’s what we’d be looking at if Brooklyn caught up to us. I mean you think people jump on the “fire casey” bandwagon now, that shit would be full if we lost a game to philly because we rested our starters.
    - noname
      
      i think if demar and lowry don’t play we would still beat the sixers and the bucks…they’re both tanking.
      - jakdripr
        
        I don’t know about that, they just gave the chicago bulls a scare last night and didn’t they beat the heat early in the season(although they’re a different team now)? Taking opponents lightly is a good way to end up facing chicago in the first round with no home court.
webfeat

I hope JV is okay. You often don’t know how important someone is to you until they’re not there. JV’s absence leaves a big gap in the rotation. Every opponent’s big looks so threatening without our one true big playing.

I liked seeing de Colo contribute, but I’d still like to see Casey give Fields another chance. There are nights when Salmons and TRoss aren’t playing well offensively or defensively, and Fields would be a nice fallback option.
- Free De Colo !
  
  Sorry, Fields is the poster boy for the back of the milk carton. Watched 2 home games last week and witnessed some of the worst shooting in warm-ups for a supposed NBA talent. But don’t feel for him as once his contract expires next year, he can retire to stud with his knockout model wife.
  - puffer
    
    Fields doesn’t have to shoot from the field because his back door cuts and movement give him easy layups. It’s his defence that would have been a significant factor in the last two Raptor losses. They have any number of guys that can shoot, but it seems they are missing defensive intensity. Free Fields.
    - FREEJV
      
      other than Novak and Ross we really dont have any consistent shooters so idk where you got that from…..
  - higdale
    
    Free De Colo.
    You expert raptor fans sure value your jump shooters. It’s too bad Fields can’t play defense, can’t rebound, can’t pass, can’t run the floor, has no athletic ability, has a very low basketball IQ which doesn’t allow him to read the defense which is why you would never see him make a backdoor cut for a dunk when the defense wasn’t looking. He just can’t make any plays to help your team win. I’m sure you saw the one game that they let him in I think it was against Golden State. What was your coach thinking to put Fields in over Salmons when Ross was hurt and have him guard Klay Thompson who went 4-15 that day and then he took a charge against Steph Curry. Fields shot 4-5 had 6 rebounds and a steal that game so there is no reason to let him back on the court. But if he could only shoot somehow all of those things that Fields can’t do that I mentioned above that a supposed NBA player could do would magically happen. There’s just no way your coach would ever consider giving Fields any minutes if he looked at Salmon’s shooting stats over the last 9 games and saw that he’s gone 14-45 from the field and 3-11 on 3s and is an accurate 3-15 over his last 4 games with no assist but with 8 total rebounds in those 4 games. Fields would never be that good and Casey’s way too smart to make any changes.
    - Bandit
      
      I actually fell out of my chair on this laughing, 100% agree
    - GoingBig
      
      sadly I have overlooked the sarcasm and agreed with you that Salmons is better
Icarus Descending

Loved De Colos game tonight, I’d like to see more of him out there. Once he came in our D stepped up big time.

Lowry is playing way too much, you can just tell he is bagged and hurting. His D is sub par and his jump shots just don’t have any lift. We need to play more de colo and Vasquez to get him if not rested then at least not run into the ground by playoff time. I’m concerned a more serious injury is in the cards if he continues with such high minutes.

Ross had more opportunities for development, unfortunately he seems to be falling into a bad habit of leaving his feet and getting caught in fouls which cut his night short. Liked seeing several plays run specifically for him to attack, good for him to develop further there.

Worst quarter of the season for d (86% fg) yet somehow we won. Good to see us toughen up in the fourth even if the pelicans roster had very little talent to speak of with the brow sitting out.
- caccia
  
  Lowry had the flu the last two games. Plus, this was a back-to-back. I think his defence will be back to normal next week. But I agree, Casey needs to find more rest for his starting backcourt over the next sixteen games.
- Bandit
  
  Between Lowry and Derozan, they must be two of the most overplayed guys for what they have to do on the team. I mean Lowry’s minutes aren’t through the roof but the effort and physicality he drops on the court… You know that’s hard on a body. Derozan just needs a lighter load so he can put some more effort on both the defensive and Offensive end.
  
  With the schedule softening up a bit, we should be able to stay competitive and see more De colo and Fields.
  
  I also want Salmons every other game, don’t care if it’s B2B or not. He’s great off of rest and scrub off of anything less than 2 days its starting to seem
Will

Glad we got the win tonight because we needed it badly. We really need another centre with some defensive instincts. Watching the layup line against us the last couple of games has been brutal. How many layups did Teague, Rivers, Gordon, and Evans have on us. Won’t somebody at least take a foul. And I completely agree about giving Salmons’ minutes to Fields.
Eunys

Great win but thank god A. Davis was not playing otherwise we all know the result….Go raptors!!!! OKC will be on back to back on Friday so good chances that Westbrook won t be playing
- Ogi
  
  Unless they sit him out tomorrow
- katmore9
  
  ugh… even without westbrook, OKC is DANGEROUS and capable of a blowout road win.
EBERG151

Great win tonight but I am also bamboozled as to why Fields hasn’t seen the court in the last week. He can definitely disrupt the dribble penetration that has been plaguing us lately, moves well without the ball and rebounds well for his position; he is also no worse than Hayes on offense (cannot play together obviously). I was definitely pleased with what De Colo brought to the table tonight and last night but why on Earth wouldn’t you at least give Fields some run if you’re Casey and need to experiment with the lineup being a bit depleted and worn down??
tyson

Sorry if i’m repeating but:

1. We NEED our team healthy, they’re
shorthanded and I didnt realize how poorly they match up against other
teams without JV and Patterson

2. Give Fields some playing time – he is NBA caliber.

3. I’m worried that we’ll need to ride Demar and Lowry hard till the end
to get good position but then they’ll be exhausted come playoffs

4. I’m not hating – cuz I’m a fan- but these early game shit defense, let
the other team make runs, get down in the hole and try to claw back out
is not efficient.

That’s all! enjoy the win
- asifyouknow
  
  Ok Tyson downer,,,lol…After reading that I feel like taking a shot of whisky…lol
Dupont Koo

William, thanks for the recap as always. Just 2 points re Ajinca: 1) back in the summer, Aaron Gray was still here; 2) Ajinca was BC’s acquisition and last summer was not the best time for Masai (politically) to associate anything BC-related, let alone a Groundhog Day move like getting Ajinca back.
- DDayLewis
  
  Ajinca was signed by the Pelicans on December 20th, which was after the Gay trade. I’m not criticizing Ujiri for not signing him, I’m just pointing out that the option was there
  - ItsAboutFun
    
    If you’re nor criticizing, and “JUST pointing out”, when do we get to enjoy pointing out the other 5,000 options that were there? Seriously, any sense to the point, if not to cast doubts at MU’s assessment of the “option”?
    
    That aside, that “keeping the rebounding disparity even” comment was kinda weird. Even? Raps won rebounding battle by a wide margin, 48-34.
    - DDayLewis
      
      I have no agenda, nor quarrel with MU over his decision to not sign Ajinca. Why are you reading so much into this? Raptors needed a backup center, and there was one available. Turns out, he didn’t sign him. Big whoop. It’s Alexis freaking Ajinca.
      
      And I more so meant in the second quarter, situationally for de Colo. It was more an observation of his rebounding strategy.
Eunys

Big noise on NBA.com for Milsap triple double yesterday but who cares when Lowry does that? Thirs in the conference and barely talk about the raptors..The suns are 9th and everybody keeps talking about how good they are” They just waiting for Chicago and Brooklyn to overtake. No respect for us at all…..
- james
  
  Well there going to be waiting for a while.
Sprechen

I’m confused. You declare Hayes a pilon, then you’re infatuated with Ajinca for abusing Hayes, criticizing Ujiri in the process. Not sure what the hate-on for Hayes is all about. It seems to be a running theme and you don’t even bother to objectively analyze his impact.
- DDayLewis
  
  I’m not infatuated with Ajinca, nor did I criticize Ujiri for not signing him.
  
  And the “hate” on Hayes is explained in detail in point three. Feel free to address my critique.
  - Steverino
    
    I did above: Eight rebounds in 18 minutes should never receive an F, no matter how else he played.
    - DDayLewis
      
      I present to you exhibit A
      http://giant.gfycat.com/MediocreLimitedBarbet.gif
      
      And exhibit B
      http://giant.gfycat.com/LightheartedSilentArachnid.gif
      
      Now do you what I meant in point 3?
      - Steverino
        
        Nope. Still not an F.
ad

DD should never have a higher grade then lowry. The same grade at best. Anyways, much needed win, they played hard, but man do the pelicans suck. KLOE needs to be resigned for this season to have any meaning/impact for the future.
- What the
  
  true words, Robin can’t be higher than Batman but mr lewis was giving a make up grade to the allstar and i thank him
  - DDayLewis
    
    No makeup grade. He did a good job of attacking the basket so he gets a good grade.
    - noname
      
      he played terrible defense though…again.
Mexiballer

I thought Hayes made a couple of big plays down the stretch and was fighting for everything. I know he has hands of stone and can clang lay ups. But does his effort tonight really deserve an F?
- ItsAboutFun
  
  Yeah, he went through a stretch that was BAD, but then finished GOOD, with some very good play when they needed some D. The bad get’s magnified by 10 often here, obliterating the good, it seems.
- Steverino
  
  I don’t think 8 rebounds in 18 minutes should ever receive an F grade, no matter how else he played.
Mexiballer

I feel relieved knowing that De Colo is there to back up Lowry for the playoffs if Vasquez plays his unpredictable style of erratic basketball.
- Bandit
  
  I feel like Vasquez is great if you play him for the first 5 mins of backup and see if he’ s on or not. If he isn’t then you go to De colo, I thinks he’s going to be a much more stable choice
  - Mexiballer
    
    I agree. Vasquez does deserve some time to see if he is going to well play that night. Usually, if he is not helping you, he is hurting you. I would like to see what De Colo brings over the next few weeks. He looked very active on defense last night and was always in position on both defense and offense. He has deceptive quickness and did a good job staying in front of his man. He sees the court well and can definitely pass the ball. He made a very nice pass to Amir on the break for an easy two. He also didnt try to do to much on offense, he played within himself and under control. Its only a one game sample though, so well see how he looks going forward.
Mack

#FreeLandryFields #FreeDeColo #SalmonsForWaterBoy
Mack

One of the scrappiest wins I’ve seen from Toronto in recent memory. Amir was great in the 4th, I love his toughness and willingness to play through injury without excuses. De Colo was fantastic even if the numbers don’t show it; he and De Colo NEED to take Salmons minutes on back-to-backs or when he doesn’t get rest. Disappointed in Ross’ defensive effort but he’ll bounce back… He really needs to find some consistency.

Btw giving Hayes an F is waaaayyy too harsh, he was effective on the boards at the very least and had some good defensive plays.
noname

we made a petition to stop the pizza bullshit…now we need to make a petition to stop the benching fields bullshit.
- katmore9
  
  “we need to make a petition to stop the benching fields bullshit.”
  
  Do you mean a petition for Fields for him to get playing time or a petition where he gets benched? Either way, don’t you think it’s pointless? The coach will make his own decisions regardless of a petition.
BoeBoe15

I completely disagree with you about Chuck Hayes. He’s not a great defender, but really knows how to play one on one defense and rebounds well, which is part of defense too.

	Amir Johnson, PF Shot Chart 35 MIN \| 8-13 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 9 REB \| 2 AST \| 1 STL \| 2 BLK \| 0 TO \| 17 PTS \| +14A step slow defensively, but he made up for it by scoring well on put-backs and pick-and-rolls. Found some rhythm in a lineup with de Colo. Given that he was the only defensively functional big on the roster tonight, I thought he did alright. He needs to get fully healthy for the playoffs.
	Tyler Hansbrough, PF Shot Chart 36 MIN \| 3-8 FG \| 1-1 FT \| 13 REB \| 0 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 1 TO \| 7 PTS \| +8Brought the hustle, but not the defense. Abused by Alexis Ajinca and quite frankly, was outplayed by Jeff Withey. As compared to his counterparts, Hansbrough was giving up some height. but he could have fared better in defending the pick-and-roll. All in all, given the short rotation of bigs, he was adequate.
	Terrence Ross, SF Shot Chart 17 MIN \| 3-9 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 2 REB \| 1 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 0 TO \| 6 PTS \| -15Found himself in foul trouble in a game in which the Raptors really needed his contribution on either end of the floor. He was entasked to lead the second unit for a while, which provided some less-than-satisfactory results. Had one nice drive off-the-dribble. This is how development happens on a good team — he’s going to need to learn on the fly.
	Kyle Lowry, PG Shot Chart 37 MIN \| 6-18 FG \| 8-10 FT \| 8 REB \| 5 AST \| 2 STL \| 0 BLK \| 6 TO \| 23 PTS \| +10Noticeably slow on defense, which makes sense given his plethora of injuries that he’s sustained of late, but how could you argue with that boxscore line? He and DeRozan were the only sources of consistent offense in tonight’s game, which makes tonight every other night this season.
	DeMar DeRozan, SG Shot Chart 39 MIN \| 9-19 FG \| 11-13 FT \| 3 REB \| 4 AST \| 3 STL \| 0 BLK \| 1 TO \| 31 PTS \| +6Look what happens when you attack the basket! In the first half, he had 25 points on a great field goal percentage because he was aggressive, and tonight, his free-throw total was legitimate. Tailed off in the second half and started settling for jumpers, but overall he kept the Raptors within striking distance for much of the first three quarters.
	Chuck Hayes, PF Shot Chart 18 MIN \| 2-6 FG \| 1-1 FT \| 8 REB \| 2 AST \| 1 STL \| 1 BLK \| 0 TO \| 5 PTS \| -2Really, really, really ineffective. See my blurb below.
	John Salmons, SF Shot Chart 19 MIN \| 1-5 FG \| 1-2 FT \| 1 REB \| 0 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 2 TO \| 4 PTS \| -3On the second night of back-to-backs, Salmons cannot be counted upon to provide anything of value, and he didn’t. Again, he’s going to counted on as a consistent performer in the playoffs. Sigh.
	Steve Novak, SF Shot Chart 4 MIN \| 0-0 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 0 REB \| 0 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 0 TO \| 0 PTS \| +1Weird that he didn’t get more minutes, especially when the Raptors were hurting for offense. I guess Withey and Ajinca would have eaten him alive on the glass, but it couldn’t hurt to stretch the floor when Hayes/Hansbrough is clogging things up on the inside. Incomplete because he wasn’t used.
	Greivis Vasquez, PG Shot Chart 21 MIN \| 4-7 FG \| 4-5 FT \| 2 REB \| 3 AST \| 0 STL \| 1 BLK \| 1 TO \| 14 PTS \| +3He bailed us out tonight. With the game tied late in the fourth, Vasquez scored five straight points on back-to-back possessions and gave the Raps the lead for good. He took his fair share of YOLO (patented) shots, but this is a team represented by Drake, so what did you really expect?
	Nando de Colo, PG Shot Chart 14 MIN \| 0-1 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 2 REB \| 3 AST \| 1 STL \| 1 BLK \| 0 TO \| 0 PTS \| +13He’s the new Landry Fields. Played solid defense, made smart (yet plenty risky) passes, and crashed the boards to help even up the rebounding disparity. I really wouldn’t mind if he played more minutes down the stretch. The Raptors could use somebody, anybody, to help out on back-to-backs when Salmons is out of commission.
	Dwane Casey Willingly shuffled the lineup when things weren’t working, and he eventually found some lineups that worked. It must have killed him to not have a functional defensive anchoring big in the lineup tonight. Good on him to try out de Colo, which helped the Raptors erase a huge deficit in the second quarter. Couldn’t find a big to stop the pick-and-roll tonight, but not for a lack of trying, as tried different looks and personnel. Nothing worked.

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