 | Amir Johnson, PF Shot Chart 29 MIN | 6-13 FG | 0-0 FT | 6 REB | 2 AST | 2 STL | 0 BLK | 4 TO | 13 PTS | -18Liked his energy, as usual, and his passing in the first half was a big reason the Raptor offense was humming early. However, he fell victim to jump-shot-itis in the third quarter (4 three point attempts??) and made some questionable decisions with the ball. I didn’t like the benching for Patterson down the stretch, but I understood it. |  |
 | Terrence Ross, SF Shot Chart 33 MIN | 4-11 FG | 0-0 FT | 2 REB | 0 AST | 1 STL | 1 BLK | 0 TO | 10 PTS | -14Not bad, not great. I had flashbacks to last year watching him get lost running around screens in the first half. Like all the Raptors besides Patterson and Lowry, he cooled off substantially in the second half. I was hoping we’d see a repeat of his performance last game, where he took the ball to the rim with aplomb. Not so. |  |
 | Jonas Valanciunas, C Shot Chart 14 MIN | 2-3 FG | 0-0 FT | 7 REB | 2 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 4 PTS | -3Not his best game. Had a really difficult time with Pau Gasol on both ends of the floor, and seemed a step slow hedging on the pick and roll set the Lakers ran for what seemed like the entire first half. Was rightly benched for Chuck Hayes down the stretch. On the bright side, 7 boards in 14 minutes is a pretty impressive rebound rate. |  |
 | Kyle Lowry, PG Shot Chart 35 MIN | 8-13 FG | 2-2 FT | 2 REB | 9 AST | 0 STL | 1 BLK | 3 TO | 21 PTS | -15Superlatives don’t do this guy justice. He does it all – whether it’s taking charges, moving the ball around the perimeter, or bailing the Raptor offence out with a late-in-the-shot clock three. He’s the reason the score was as close as it was. Playing at an All-Star level. |  |
 | DeMar DeRozan, SG Shot Chart 42 MIN | 10-24 FG | 3-4 FT | 6 REB | 7 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 23 PTS | -13His shots were falling in the first half, but did his best Rudy Gay impression in the fourth quarter, where he tried (and failed) to go toe-to-toe with Swaggy P on the degree of difficulty scale. Took a silly technical with 20 seconds left, too. One of the best parts of his improvement over the last couple months has been that when his shot isn’t falling, he looks to move the ball and contribute in other ways. In crunch time, that mentality just wasn’t there. | |
 | Patrick Patterson, PF Shot Chart 29 MIN | 7-12 FG | 1-2 FT | 7 REB | 1 AST | 1 STL | 1 BLK | 1 TO | 17 PTS | +4Excellent offensive game. I just feel comfortable when he’s got the ball in his hands – it seems like he’s either hitting shots or making the right decision with the ball. He’s really blossoming in Toronto’s pass-heavy offence and has turned into an excellent bench scorer. | |
 | Chuck Hayes, PF Shot Chart 23 MIN | 2-2 FG | 3-3 FT | 6 REB | 1 AST | 0 STL | 1 BLK | 1 TO | 7 PTS | +5The only Raptor who seemed to be able to slow Pau Gasol, and so, rightly, he stayed in the game through crunch time. He’s a heady player – exactly the kind of guy you want to be your fourth big. His lack of length does limit his effectiveness somewhat on both ends of the court. |  |
 | Greivis Vasquez, PG Shot Chart 21 MIN | 5-11 FG | 0-0 FT | 5 REB | 8 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 0 TO | 11 PTS | +15Saw the court extremely well tonight. Had the ball moving, and hit enough of his shots that I didn’t mind the couple he forced up. Had a nice score/steal/score sequence in the fourth that was basically the Raptors’ last gasp. | |
 | Julyan Stone, SG Shot Chart 13 MIN | 0-1 FG | 0-0 FT | 6 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 0 PTS | +9Got some reserve wing minutes with John Salmons out with back spasms. For most of the game, you didn’t notice anything positive or negative when he was out there, which is as good of an outcome as you could hope for. In the fourth, though, he just couldn’t keep up with the pace of the game. Did bother Nick Young with his length and make him take some high degree of difficulty shots (a few of which he made, but still). |  |
 | Dwane Casey Liked his rotations – I thought he made the right decision keeping Patterson and Hayes in the game down the stretch. Liked his timeout calls, and the inbound plays seemed smooth. However, When the team comes out in the second half, shoots nothing but jumpers, and goes completely cold, you have to find a way to adjust and get some easy points. |  |
Four Things We Saw
- Defence? What’s that? As Andrew wrote about in his pre-game, this was basically a glorified game of pick up. The effort just wasn’t there (for either team, honestly), and once Nick Young got hot in the fourth, the game was over. Ryan Kelly with 17 points is just unacceptable.
- Eleven free throw attempts. Thirty three point attempts. Something’s not right here. The Raptors were really, really jumper heavy all game – a strategy that worked early, and bit them in the ass late once they stopped falling.
- Nick Young hit some absolutely impossible shots down the stretch, but it was gameplanning and a consistent effort that cost the Raptors tonight. The game was there for the taking multiple times, and they just couldn’t finish it off.
- Today’s a great example of why Raptor followers should realize that Kyle Lowry is more deserving than DeMar DeRozan for an All-Star nod. Both guys get their stats, but one of them is so, so much more valuable to his teammates on a nightly basis.
