Morning Coffee – Sun, Nov 13

Nogueira steps up, DeRozan sensational again as Raptors down Knicks | Toronto Sun

Front and centre in line for credit in this one was a new-ish member to that club, Lucas Nogueira.
Of course, there was still DeMar DeRozan at the head of that line with his eighth 30-plus point performance in the team’s first nine games, something only Michael Jordan has ever accomplished before.
But right behind him and a much bigger surprise, if everyone is being honest, were the contributions of Nogueira.
Nogueira, who suddenly seems to be head coach Dwane Casey’s big man of choice to close out games — although health is playing into that, too — lived up to his coaches’ confidence with two big blocks in the final minute to ensure this one didn’t get away.
“His thing is staying healthy,” Casey said after the game. “His health since he’s been here has been something he hasn’t been fortunate to have. He hasn’t been able to have consistent minutes on the floor, whether it’s practice or whatever and the train goes on. It’s hard to wait in this league.
“But this last month he’s been consistent, he got through training camp,” the coach added . “He had one little nick with his ankle, which set him back a little bit, but now he’s getting some consistent minutes.”

Nogueira’s emergence helping Raptors fill hole left by Biyombo – Sportsnet.ca

Until now Nogueira’s been stuck in the purgatory reserved for young players with nagging injuries — in his case a seemingly chronic back and hamstring problem. His injuries made it difficult for Nogueira to get up to game speed and gave him the perception of being unreliable, which makes it hard to gain the coach’s trust. Without playing time the confidence dries up and a vicious cycle sets in.
Whether it’s sleeping in Biyombo’s bed or taking his advice about cleaning up his diet and not partying as much, Nogueira has never been healthier as a Raptor. He got through a full training camp for the first time, but when he tweaked his ankle in the last pre-season game it looked like fate was going to get in the way again as suddenly rookie Jakob Poeltl was designated Valanciunas’ backup. But when Valanciunas tweaked his knee, the door opened and Bebe burst through.
“I think basketball — not just basketball, but every sport — is about confidence,” he said. “Sometimes it’s hard, you know, to get in the game, like last year, my first two years maybe don’t play 20 games, then get out there and try to do my best. Because the game speed is different, if you don’t have game sequences. Right now I have the chance play 27, 25 minutes every night, so helping me stay more active, more energy.”
His teammates love it, and so does the crowd at the Air Canada Centre. In the last three minutes of the game, Nogueira finished an alley-oop from Kyle Lowry to give the Raptors a four-point lead and chipped in with spectacular elastic-man blocks on Carmelo Anthony and Derrick Rose that got huge roars, reminiscent of Biyombo’s moments in the playoffs.

Slim chance pays off for Raptors’ Ross | Toronto Star

He’s shaved 15 pounds off his body simply by changing his diet, recapturing some of the quickness and explosiveness he thought he was losing.
“On off-days I have breakfast, lunch and dinner at home and snacks throughout the day, but it’s usually like a lot of vegetables, fruit, a lot of water and then some protein at the end of the day,” the 25-year-old said. “A lot of fish, some chicken. Not a lot of carbs and not a lot of red meat, either. It’s a combination of a lot of different things.
“I have such a high metabolism that whatever I eat gets worked off, but now I’m on vitamins, I’ve got my chef cooking three times a day. I eat around the clock, but it’s healthy rather than just eating out all the time.”
Ross came to the realization that he needed to make some changes after putting on weight while rehabbing from ankle surgery in May 2015. He couldn’t do a lot of cardio work after having bone spurs shaved and loose particles removed, and he added about 15 pounds because he was able to work mainly in the weight room.
“When I came off surgery I really couldn’t move that much, so the thing to do was to just lift weights, get bigger and put on a whole bunch of weight. I think with that weight I was kind of slower than I usually was,” he said. “Getting back to the weight I was a couple of years ago (just over 190 pounds), I feel a lot more light on my feet, a little quicker on my feet. That’s probably what it is.”

Game Rap: Raptors 118, Knicks 107 | Toronto Raptors

UNDERRATED RAPTORS PLAYER OF THE GAME
DeMar DeRozan once again topped the 30-point threshold, putting in a 33-point effort against the Knicks while getting MVP chants from the ACC crowd. DeRozan shot 11-for-23 from the floor, 1-for-1 from the three-point line (on a four-point play opportunity), and 10-for-13 from the free throw line. He added seven rebounds, four assists and two steals in 36 minutes. DeRozan became the first player since Michael Jordan in 1986-87 to score 30 points in eight of his first nine games.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BMvGvtqguSx/

Trio of Raptors lead the charge to down Knicks, 118-107 – Raptors HQ

It’s easy to romanticize the roll Bebe now has going with the Raptors. He’s a lovable character, free-wheeling on and off the court. We knew going into this year it would be his time to shine if he wanted to. After the game, Bebe was about as emotional as I’ve ever seen him. You could tell this past week, the three games of stellar play, have meant the world to him. In typical gregarious fashion, Nogueira was honest. He credited a change of habits over the summer — less going out, no alcohol (clean now for eight months), and the presence of his baby daughter in his life. He had kind words to say about DeRozan and Lowry as leaders of the team. And, in a stirring final note, he gave credit to Bismack Biyombo.
“I don’t know if it’s a magic, but now I have a great moment in my life and I live in [Biyombo’s] apartment,” joked Nogueira. “I think he’s a part of it… yeah, I think he’s the reason I play well.” Then Bebe got a degree more serious. “When he was gone, during the summer, he told me ‘Lucas, it’s your time to shine, go get it.’”
“I know Biz since I was 15, playing in Spain against each other. So we have much respect for each other. But especially now he’s gone, he told me ‘It’s your time, go get it’ and I took it serious and now things go well for me.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BMvGbB7A4TM/

Raptors 118, Knicks 107: ‘Who is this 92?’ – Posting and Toasting

Then Lucas Nogueira descended from the heavens to bring fiery judgment upon the Knicks, finishing alley-oops and blocking shots and smiting the firstborn of every family in the kingdom, from the highborns to the lowliest servants. Yet another Porzingis dunk (he had like six tonight) off a cut and feed from Rose pulled the Knicks within two, but after the dunk he touched the ball, which is a delay of game, which was the Knicks’ second, which was a technical, which felt like the beginning of the end. Lowry took over on the offensive end and Nogueira rejected a Melo baseline floater and a Rose drive. In the final minute Lowry missed a three as the shot clock expired, but the Raptors (natch) got the offensive rebound. Guess who. Rhymes with Flo-terr-a. The nail in the coffin came after Toronto inbounded with the Knicks looking for a steal or quick foul; Courtney Lee and Justin Holiday doubled DeRozan, but left the baseline open, which he drove down for the and-one. Sigh.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BMvGFPAgHvX/

Carmelo pulls different kind of disappearing act as Knicks fade | New York Post

“I’m more hurt we lost and the way we lost, a game that was so close, so winnable,’’ Rose said. “I love we gave ourselves a chance.’’
Anthony reentered the game in the fourth quarter with 7:03 left, but couldn’t regain his mojo on either end and finished 10-for-21 from the field. Anthony missed all four of his shots in the fourth, including getting blocked on a runner by young Brazilian Lucas Nogueira with 1:09 left and the Knicks down, 109-105.
Rose was blocked on the next possession by Nogueira, the third-year springy forward, as the Raptors’ bench outplayed the Knicks’ forever-changing cast of reserves. On the clincher, DeRozan drove baseline, scored on a layup and got fouled — the three-point play making it 112-105 with 26.8 seconds left.
“They switched and put a bigger guy on me and a smaller guy on KP,’’ Anthony said. “We were trying to find that mismatch.’’

https://www.instagram.com/p/BMuMV23ARAY/

Knicks keep it close, but falter in crunch time against Raptors | Newsday

“They switched,” Anthony said of the Raptors’ fourth-quarter adjustment. “They put a bigger guy on me, put a smaller guy on KP. We were trying to find that mismatch, work that mismatch. We’ve got to do a better job at executing down the stretch.”
DeMar DeRozan, the NBA’s leading scorer, had a brilliant game. He shot 11-for-23 and scored 33 points to lead Toronto (7-2). Norman Powell added 19 and Kyle Lowry 16.
Porzingis played with foul trouble again, and scored 21 points. Derrick Rose also had 21 points, and suffered a left shoulder stinger that he favored throughout the second half.
Knicks videos
“I’m more hurt that we lost and the way that we lost,” Rose said. “The game is so close and so winnable. But we got to figure it out.”
Rose also was upset that he took only two foul shots. He felt he was attacking and not getting the benefit of the whistle.
“I’m going to the lane the same way everybody else is and I’m still not getting calls,” Rose said. “They said I throw myself into people but that’s the league. If I beat them there and I’m there before they get there, I think that’s a foul if there’s contact.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BMu5doNgvMD/

DeRozan: “I’ll brag about it to the kids” – Video – TSN

After scoring over 30 points for the eighth time in nine games, DeMar DeRozan talked about joining elite company and said that when he finishes playing he will brag about this with his kids.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BMu_d4xAaIc/

Home Court: Who’s the best Raptor ever? – Video – TSN