The Raptors are back home tonight to face the ever-entertaining and new look New York Knickerbockers in a game that not only affects the standings, but also the Raptors’ 2016 draft pick.
What you need to know about the Knicks..
From a Raptor fan perspective, tracking the Knicks this season is as important as anything the Raptors are doing because New York is rocking a first-round pick that, one way or another, will land in Toronto in 2016.
You remember that time when the Pistons won the ‘ship, and still landed the second overall pick in 2003 due to a trade with the Grizzlies in 1997? Well, it’s sort of like that, except Denver is in involved in a semi-complicated way, and whatever first round pick the Raptors receive from this whole elaborate transaction, they hopefully won’t draft the Darko of the draft over the D-Wade or the Melo.
One catch in all this: The Knicks are actually decent this year. Not great, probably not even good – but decent enough to not be bad, which is what they typically are. The Knicks have zero reason to tank this year, so winning is a priority. Carmelo is leading the offense, and Porzingis is the most legit player the Knicks have drafted since Danilo Gallinari in 2008 – except Porzingis will probably be more of a long-term cornerstone than Gallinari was.
Despite what their starting line-up might tell you on paper, the Knicks are doing a respectable job defensively this season as their 100.4 oppg is slightly above average and they hold their opponents to 42% from the field which is 11th best in the league.
Matchups
PG: Jose Calderon vs Kyle Lowry | Edge: Lowry
It is hard to imagine that there was a time where Jose Calderon was looked at as the favourable point-guard when both him and Kyle were battling it out for the starting position in the 2012-2013 season. Now, Lowry has cemented himself as an elite point guard; while Jose Calderon still struggles defensively and there’s been chatter among Knicks’ fans that Jose should take a seat on the bench behind young point guards Langston Galloway and Jerian Grant.
But Derek Fisher loves Calderon, and the Spanish veteran will continue to start. It goes without saying – as much as Jose is respected by all in Toronto – Lowry should have his way in this match-up. While K-Low is more than capable of hitting long-range daggers – even in transition – he should take advantage of a rather slow Jose Calderon here, and use his quickness to penetrate and get into the lane to cause the Knicks’ defense to collapse.
SG: Sasha Vujacic vs DeMar DeRozan | Edge: DeRozan
Another favourable match-up for the Raptors – and that’s being polite.
Vujacic is really struggling the season, shooting just 30.2% from the field, and 19.2% from three. On the season, he’s a +/- of -3.4.
The Knicks will surely improve at this position when Arron Afflalo – who’s yet to make his debut for the Knicks – should return this week after sitting out a month due to a hamstring injury.
Lowry and DeRozan are in the top tier of back-courts in the league, and they’re going up against a back-court of Calderon and Vujacic tonight. No excuses. Take the game to them and get the job done.
SF: Carmelo Anthony vs James Johnson | Edge: Anthony
Quickly, it should be noted that Carroll is improbable tonight.
“(The injury) has affected his play, his jump shot and his defensive movement,” Casey said of Carroll. “Getting him rest right now is the most important thing.”
The ‘Melo – JJ match-up is the key battle tonight. James Johnson is a capable defender, and he was originally signed last season to contain elite swing-men like Carmelo Anthony – but while his individual defense is good, he struggles to fit into defensive schemes as a whole, and tends to do too much at times offensively.
But tonight is a good chance to prove himself.
Anthony is scoring 21.4 ppg, but he’s also shooting over 18 shots to get there which translates to 37% from the field. With guarding ‘Melo, it’s pretty straightforward: Keep him outside and contest everything – he’ll succumb and miss more shots than he’ll make.
Carmelo’s ppg is impressive, but his short chat isn’t.
PF: Kristaps Porzingis vs Luis Scola | Edge: Scola
I expect Scola’s savvyness and experience to trump the Porzingis hype-train tonight.
While Porzingis is a walking highlight-reel, like Carmelo, his shooting percentage is way-low, and he’s still finding his feet offensively.
Porzingis is still raw, yet dangerously – and freakishly – long and athletic. Scola – and any other big who’s on the court at the same time as Porzingis – has to box-out tonight, as Porzingis is insanely good at put-back dunks off of missed shots.
While Scola has the edge, this will be an interesting match-up, and I do expect Porzingis’ length and strength to give Scola trouble on both ends of the floor.
C: Robin Lopez vs Jonas Valanciunas | Edge: Valanciunas
Valanciunas 2.0 is here, and he’s here to stay. He has the edge here, but it’s also important to note that Robin Lopez is a tricky match-up and is coming off of a double-double in a win over the Lakers on Sunday.
Also, he was grabbing boards with only one shoe.
Robin Lopez just played for a while without his shoe.
Oh man 😂😂😂 #knicks pic.twitter.com/7w5x5KzufI
— NBA On Def Pen (@NBAOnDefPen) November 8, 2015
In a game against the Raptors last season, Lopez scored 22 points on 62.5% shooting doing most of his damage inside the restricted area, so the key for Valanciunas here is to keep the crafty Lopez as far away from the basket as possible.
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Tip-off is at 7:30 pm EST.
