Recap: Toronto Raptors Annihilate Minnesota Timberwolves, 113-99 – Raptors HQ
It was a solid reminder of how effective the offense can be. Whether it's working inside-out or around the perimeter, Toronto is just so much more fun to watch when players aren't succumbing to "hero ball" and going iso every chance they get. The Timberwolves aren't the most imposing squad the NBA has to offer, so it was nice to see the Raptors make quick work of a team that is young, developing and not much of a threat to anyone.
NBA playoff races and magic numbers update for April 2, 2015 – CBSSports.com
Locks: Atlanta Hawks (No. 1 seed, Eastern Conference, home court throughout conference playoffs) Cleveland Cavaliers (playoff berth) Chicago Bulls (playoff berth) Toronto Raptors (Atlantic Division championship, top four seed, tiebreaker advantage over non-division winners) Washington Wizards (playoff berth) Current matchups (1) Atlanta Hawks vs. (8) Brooklyn Nets (2) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (7) Miami Heat (3) Chicago Bulls vs. (6) Milwaukee Bucks (4) Toronto Raptors vs. (5) Washington Wizards
Game Rap: Raptors 113 Timberwolves 99 | Toronto Raptors
The Underrated Raptor: Tyler Hansbrough recorded his first double-double of the season with a 10-point, 11-rebound night. Hansbrough made all three of his field goal attempts and four of his seven free throws. 150 Victories: Wednesday’s game gave Dwane Casey his 150th victory as head coach of the Raptors. Casey is second all-time on the franchise wins list for coaches, trailing current Timberwolves assistant Sam Mitchell (156 victories) by just six games. That’s a Rap… “We’re fighting for something too. We’re fighting for home court, we’re fighting for respect. We’re fighting for, ‘everybody is woe is me,’ and whatever. We’re fighting for something too. If we don't come out and play, no matter what the record is, anybody can beat anybody in this league.” – Casey on playing teams fighting for a playoff spot to close out the season
Post Game: Toronto Raptors emerge victorious in Minnesota
Defense: B Outside of the game’s opening moments and garbage time, the Raps were pretty solid on defense. Part of this was a result of fatigue combined on Minnesota’s part though. The rebuilding T’Wolves only had eight players see the floor, so that may have been part of the reason why their offense had a scrimmage feel to it at times. Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine, and Chase Budinger had solid scoring nights (25, 22, and 19 points respectively), but there wasn’t much else that Minnesota was able to do. If not for Dwane Casey clearing the bench for the final frame, the Raptors definitely would’ve won by 20+.
Raptors 113, Timberwolves 96: Here’s a song | A Wolf Among Wolves
I would start by saying that it’s tough when your team’s defensive leader, Ricky Rubio, has been sidelined by most of the year. Even worse that his replacement (for most of the year), Zach LaVine, came into the league with a notable problem on the defensive end. His troubles, especially on the pick and roll, have lived up to those expectations. That’s really where it starts for me. If the guy guarding the point guard allows his man to enter the lane, it causes one guy to help, then another to slide over and so forth. Too many breakdowns will result in lots of points for the other team. To be clear, I’m not pinning this all on LaVine, as the rest of the Wolves’ roster, especially the interior, has been bad. But it starts at the top. As it does in every other facet of the game, missing Rubio hurts the Wolves on defense.
Trial by fire has Wiggins on fast track to success – Article – TSN
Although there's no definitive blueprint for developing successful NBA players, the trial by fire approach has Wiggins on the fast track to stardom. "It's been good for me," said the 20-year-old Vaughan, Ont. native following a 113-99 loss to the Raptors, his hometown team. "A chance to really learn and experience different things, put me in different positions. I think it will really help me next year." Wednesday's game had long been out of reach when Caboclo entered to a standing ovation from traveling Raptors fans scattered around Minnesota's Target Center. With three and a half minutes remaining and Toronto up by 24, Wiggins went right at the Caboclo, hitting a lay-up and drawing a foul on the Raptors' rookie. Without hesitation, Caboclo drove at him on the next possession, just missing a running bank shot. The two rookies shared the floor for just over two minutes. Outside of that, they don't have much in common.
Bruno Caboclo's growth stunted with Raptors lacking their own D League team | Toronto Star
The contrast between Capela, who shocked a lot people with a series of screen-roll dunks when he was pressed into action on Monday, and Caboclo, who looked like a deer in headlights in a fumble-filled 90 second appearance last Friday, I guess it was, was stark. Do you think it had something to do with the fact Capela played 38 D League games, averaged about 24 minutes a night, with the Rio Grande Vipers, who happen to have a sole affiliation with the Rockets compared to Bruno’s seven-game, less than 10 minute a night of wasted time with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, who are the D League catch-all team for NBA franchises that haven’t seen fit to either purchase their own team or strike as single-affiliation working arrangement with one?
Kelly: Raptors fans need to find a balance on their emotional see-saw – The Globe and Mail
“As a city, as a country, we have to learn how to win, too,” Ujiri says. “I know [the fans] are starved for something. I understand that. But be a fan of the game, be a fan of the team and the culture, and grow with it. Don’t put it up at a level it’s not …” – Ujiri indicates a point high above his head – “and don’t kill us at a level it’s also not …” – and Ujiri holds his hand down to the floor. The atmosphere that emotional see-saw creates may be unmatched in the NBA. After a game in Toronto this year, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich found Ujiri and told him, “I hope you understand how special this is. Enjoy it.” It’s good advice for the rest of us as well, because history suggests getting beyond the current stage is going to take a while. The arc of the NBA is long, and it often bends away from success.
Raptors chew up Andrew Wiggins and Timberwolves | Raptors | Sports | Toronto Sun
“We allowed them to shoot 53%,’’ said head coach Dwane Casey of his team’s defence. “Our offence had some lapses. I thought it was good in spots, but we had some lapses defensively. “Overall, I thought it was good. We let them shoot 53%, but a lot of it came at the end when we had to get our point guards out and we had to put Landry (Fields) at the point. “It got a little ugly at the end, but overall I thought our professional approach came in the second half.” Terrence Ross had his jumper going, Amir Johnson would emerge as a point forward, while Jonas Valanciunas responded from a sub-par first half by dominating the paint in the second. Toronto’s wing play was solid with DeMar DeRozan, Greivis Vasquez and Lou Williams each reaching double digits in scoring, while James Johnson and Tyler Hansbrough took turns in imposing their will.
Timberwolves hardly a test for Raptors | Toronto Star
The ball movement was infectious — the Raptors racked up 25 assists on the night, including six each from power forwards Amir Johnson and Patrick Patterson. “It makes everything easy, it makes their defence work,” said James Johnson, who had 13 points coming off the bench. “As long as we make the defence work and keep moving the ball, there is always going to be a hiccup in their defence somewhere and we’ll try to exploit that.” Lowry has now missed four games in a row. On the plus side, the Raptors are 5-4 in games where Lowry isn’t in the lineup. Vaughan native and No. 1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins led the way for the Timberwolves with 25 points. Fellow GTA product Anthony Bennett, in his second game back from injury, chipped in with eight points.
