James Johnson is your basketball overlord. Toronto puts in a great defensive performance and Popovich will have to wait to hit 1,000 wins.
Season-low 82 points for the Spurs … JV putting in work defensively … James Johnson making a plea to be on your fantasy basketball squad. It was a near-perfect Sunday in Raptorland.
 | Amir Johnson, PF 26 MIN | 6-8 FG | 3-4 FT | 8 REB | 1 AST | 1 STL | 1 BLK | 1 TO | 15 PTS | -5 +/-Brutal first half. Amir had three fouls and the Spurs crashed the glass at their leisure. But he bounced back in the second half with some decent defence and a lot of activity underneath the hoop. Teams have to stunt at him when he rolls to the rim, opening up lanes for smart cutters (like James Johnson!) |  |
 | James Johnson, PF 30 MIN | 8-10 FG | 3-4 FT | 4 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 20 PTS | +19 +/-James Johnson is beyond grades. He has transcended the system in which RR judges players. Seriously, over the past few weeks, the guy was being built up like Toronto’s basketball saviour and has actually surpassed that hype. Giving him an A+ feels like an insult. Real analysis, though: he cuts, he plays good, consistent defence, he plays really hard every minute he’s out there, loves to get to the rim, finishes when he gets to the rim … It’s like the anti-Ross. |  |
 | Jonas Valanciunas, C 34 MIN | 3-7 FG | 2-2 FT | 16 REB | 0 AST | 1 STL | 4 BLK | 1 TO | 8 PTS | +14 +/-He did a good job cleaning the glass and containing the Spurs frontcourt with one of the finest defensive efforts from a Raptors centre in a long time. JV got fired up in the third quarter, complaining for a call underneath the basket, but he does it to himself. Don’t put the ball down, Jonas. Just go straight up. He did play in the fourth quarter tonight, by the way. |  |
 | Kyle Lowry, PG 37 MIN | 5-15 FG | 1-2 FT | 5 REB | 7 AST | 2 STL | 0 BLK | 4 TO | 12 PTS | +18 +/-Lowry looked energized for parts of this game, which is a positive in itself. But that energy was often channeled into reckless drives and shot attempts where he wasn’t really set or stable. Those turnovers (4) are backbreakers when paired with poor shooting. His dish to Johnson for the huge three from James Johnson was a beautiful show of patience, though. |  |
 | DeMar DeRozan, SG 36 MIN | 4-14 FG | 10-12 FT | 3 REB | 4 AST | 3 STL | 1 BLK | 3 TO | 18 PTS | +20 +/-Toronto wasn’t tossing from beyond the arc much tonight, opting to live at the line for easy scores. DeRozan had 10 free throw attempts on the game, making up for a poor shooting night. His shot selection reminded of the DD of yesteryear, where he took shots in plays that were designed for him, even if the look wasn’t there. | |
 | Patrick Patterson, PF 27 MIN | 3-4 FG | 0-0 FT | 3 REB | 2 AST | 2 STL | 1 BLK | 0 TO | 7 PTS | +11 +/-Not enough work on the glass from 2Pat tonight. His vicious block on Kawhi aside, Patterson could have brought a bit more. |  |
 | Tyler Hansbrough, PF 4 MIN | 0-1 FG | 0-0 FT | 2 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 0 PTS | -7 +/-Non-game analysis: your boy Will Lou and I highly recommend watching Hansbrough’s pre-game shooting. Guy is a machine with the corner 3. | |
 | Terrence Ross, SF 15 MIN | 1-4 FG | 0-0 FT | 4 REB | 1 AST | 2 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 2 PTS | -15 +/-He still can’t finish through contact. Ross is in Casey’s doghouse and it may take him a while to get out of there. |  |
 | Greivis Vasquez, PG 16 MIN | 2-6 FG | 0-0 FT | 2 REB | 2 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 0 TO | 5 PTS | -15 +/-Another bench player who didn’t really show up tonight. Not much of a consolation, but Vasquez didn’t turn the ball over tonight. |  |
 | Louis Williams, SG 15 MIN | 0-5 FG | 0-0 FT | 1 REB | 1 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 0 PTS | -15 +/-Totally non-existent tonight. Toronto could have used his scoring punch, but he never found his rhythm. Semi-related: Koreen from the National Post had a great piece on Lou from Friday night. Highly recommend it for the perspective on a gunner’s mentality. |  |
 | Dwane Casey You don’t get an A+ for simply doing your job. Playing James Johnson more minutes is something that the fans have been calling for, and well, look where we are. Johnson starts, plays a ton of highly-effective minutes, Raptors hold the Spurs to a season-low. Credit Casey for inserting JJ against a championship team, though. That’s a big risk, so I’ll give him some kudos. |  |
Two Things We Saw
- Popovich will have to wait for his 1000th win, but didn’t seem very upset after the game. Casey and Pop were sharing smiles after the buzzer.
- Tim Duncan turned the ball over at the end of this game, throwing it out of bounds in a miscommunication. Seeing Timmy make a major mistake is an unsettling feeling.
