 | Ed Davis, PF 31 MIN | 5-11 FG | 2-4 FT | 8 REB | 1 AST | 0 STL | 3 BLK | 1 TO | 12 PTS | -12Had a rough night shooting the ball early but didn’t let it deter him, continuing to take the ball to the hoop with increasing effectiveness as the game went on. Got burnt on D by the Magic bigs, but a lot of that was due to helping with the Raptor wings’ inability to cover their marks on the pick and roll. Sat late in the fourth for the second straight game, though this one was slightly more warranted due to matchups (why the hell didn’t the Magic leave Vucevic in the game, by the way?) and ineffectiveness. Note the “slightly.” |  |
 | Amir Johnson, PF 37 MIN | 9-18 FG | 3-5 FT | 10 REB | 0 AST | 1 STL | 3 BLK | 2 TO | 21 PTS | +14Seemed to be the only Raptor who gave a crap early on, as he single handedly kept the team in the game in the first half with a varied offensive game and tough help defence (though he, like Davis, had trouble with the dive man). Cooled off as the game went on, though I have no idea why he sat for so long down the stretch – he was clearly the Raps’ most effective big and should have been on the floor. He’s clearly become an emotional leader of this team, and it was validating to watch him put the Raptors on his back in the first half – the effort’s always been there, but the effectiveness fleeting. Not tonight, though. |  |
 | Landry Fields, SF 23 MIN | 1-4 FG | 2-2 FT | 5 REB | 2 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 4 PTS | -2Pretty nondescript game tonight – played good man defence but had a hard time recovering on switches like the other Raptors. On offense, he was a non-factor, as usual, though it was nice to see him hit a long jumper. Keep on throwing them up, Landry. | |
 | Jose Calderon, PG 27 MIN | 4-7 FG | 1-1 FT | 1 REB | 6 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 10 PTS | +2Was basically a facilitator tonight, though with Amir’s hot start and DeMar’s hot finish that was all he needed to be. Didn’t seem very active in the offense, though he did hit some big shots in the fourth when the Raptors needed him to. |  |
 | DeMar DeRozan, SG 43 MIN | 10-17 FG | 2-2 FT | 4 REB | 7 AST | 0 STL | 1 BLK | 1 TO | 22 PTS | +4I’d give him an A just for that impossible game winning shot he hit (seriously, how many times out of 100 does he hit that? Five? Six?), but he put the team on his back in the fourth quarter after an uneven performance early in the game, hitting a couple of open jumpers and throwing down an emphatic dunk in traffic. For the rest of the game, he was mostly nondescript, but one quarter can go a long way – hopefully this is a sign that he’s breaking out of the month-long slump he’s been on. | |
 | Aaron Gray, C 7 MIN | 1-1 FG | 0-0 FT | 0 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 0 TO | 2 PTS | +3Nothing special (obviously), but played solid man D and hit a nice hook shot in the lane. Good effort. | |
 | Kyle Lowry, PG 21 MIN | 1-3 FG | 0-0 FT | 4 REB | 6 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 4 TO | 3 PTS | 0We saw Bad Lowry (a trademark of Arsenalist Corp.) for the second straight night tonight – he was passive on offense and looked tired on defense. In no way am I suggesting he should look for his own on every possession, but he needs to mix in his speed and dribble-drives more often to be a really effective offensive player. It’s what sets him apart. |  |
 | Alan Anderson, SG 28 MIN | 4-9 FG | 5-5 FT | 4 REB | 3 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 0 TO | 13 PTS | +4Reined it in a bit from last night, though I’d argue that all of the 3s he took were poor shot choices. Besides that, though, made some great decisions with the ball in the lane, making the extra pass multiple times, and rightly deferred to Amir early and DeMar late in the game. | |
 | Terrence Ross, SG 24 MIN | 4-8 FG | 0-0 FT | 2 REB | 0 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 0 TO | 10 PTS | -3Looked a step slow on defense (tired, I’m assuming), but it seemed like he was going to get away with it, holding J.J. Redick in check for most of the game with his length. Late in the fourth, though, it finally crept up to him, as he was really late on a switch and fouled Redick on a four-point play that kept the Magic in the game. On offense, he was basically a jump shooter, though he hit enough from outside to be effective. | |
 | Dwane CaseyDid a decent job with substitutions for the most part, though I can’t understand why he kept Lowry in and Amir out for so long in the fourth as the Magic came back. The “play” he drew up with the game on the line was to get DeMar the ball, and, as awful as the shot was, it worked, so we’ll give him a bit of credit here. I also liked the smaller look he introduced in the fourth, which was completely warranted given the Magic shooters on the floor. |  |
Quick Reaction: Raptors 97, Magic 95
Finally, karma throws us a bone.
