Quick Reaction: Toronto Pulls A Magic Trick And Steals A Win From Orlando

One of his best games so far this month on the offensive end. He played with a bounce in his step and he became a scoring option down low that the team has been craving. Or, more importantly, a scoring option in the post that Kyle Lowry trusts. The problem is he wasn’t active on the glass (3 rebounds) and he didn’t wow me on the defensive end.

I know fans feel I rip on Ross, but he’s not playing good. Period. He was burned by Ben Gordon countless times off the dribble tonight and his focus on the defensive end just hasn’t been there lately. Last night he scored a season-high 23 points, but his lapses on the defensive end are really hurting Toronto. Granted his scoring and rebounding numbers look great, but if he’s not getting at it on the defensive end he’s going to find his way into Dwane Casey’s doghouse sooner rather than later. Going 3-11 from the field tonight didn’t help much either.

I mentioned it last night, but why isn’t Valanciunas getting more shot attempts in the paint? Tonight he had six field goal attempts, but with Toronto shooting 40% from the field in the first half it’s baffling why the guards wasn’t feeding him the rock when their shots were falling. What’s more shocking is he didn’t have a single field goal attempt in the second half. If you want a big man to rebound, block shots and defend, you need to feed him the ball more than they are feeding Valanciunas. And the talk in the comments section about Valanciunas not sealing his man or turning the ball over? It’s rubbish. Tonight he only turned the ball over one time and last night he had two turnovers. In fact, he hasn’t turned the ball over more than three times since November 11th. Keep in mind that Lowry coughed up the ball nine times against New York.

Just another strong game from Lowry. Great to see him getting lots of teammates looks; maybe it’s a sign they are starting to earn his trust.

Landry Fields hit a three-pointer in the third quarter tonight and his teammates and the fans loved it. Despite battling through nerve issues in his elbow, he’s found a way to carve out a role where he’s not a liability on the offensive end. He had a great dish to Amir Johnson in the first quarter that’s worth checking out on YouTube. He’s also finding spots on the court which forces his defender to stick on him which prevents opponents from throwing double teams at Lowry or whatever Raptor has the hot hand. If he can stick the odd perimeter shot it will do wonders for Casey being able to keep him on the court.

I don’t care that Hansbrough plays like an elephant stomping through a store full of fine china! He’s playing with the kind of heart and passion this team needs right now.

He went 4-5 from the field and provided a big spark in the second half. His help defence was fantastic, too.

Patterson dished out six dimes, had TWO steals and went 4-6 from the field. Just another efficient and great game from James Johnson off of the bench. I know it might be blasphemy, but I wouldn’t be shocked to see Patterson get a couple of starts this month if Amir Johnson needs to rest up and heal.

He only went 0-4 from the field in the first half, but the problem is if he’s not scoring he’s not doing anything that warrants him being on the court. Early in the third quarter he was stuck at -19. His inability to contribute has meant that Lowry has had to play heavy minutes, which, for the time being is great, but what happens when that leads to Lowry getting injured or worn down by the time the playoffs role around? Vasquez needs to find a way to contribute in a hurry and it can’t only be through scoring.

He was one of the few Raptors to show up in the first half as he went 4-8 from the field for a team-high 10 points. He kept rolling in the second half and finished with a team-high 18 points.

I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall during halftime. Toronto got stomped in the first half and Casey found a way to fire up his troops to steal a game they had no business winning after a horrible first half. He also tightened up minutes and stuck players not producing to the pine in the second half. A little tough love might be just what this team needed.