Utilized: James Johnson helps lead Raptors past Heat

James Johnson rewarded head coach Dwane Casey's hunch in a major way.

by

Raptors 108, Heat 94 | Quick Reaction | Box Score

Toronto Raptors head coach doesn’t like to tweak his starting lineup on a game-to-game basis. He’s also not one to let any information leak out early, playing injuries and rotation changes very close to the chest.

So it was a major surprise when, right before tip-off, it was announced that James Johnson would start in place of Terrence Ross. It was perhaps made more surprising because of Johnson’s ever-changing role with the team, one that has been cause for fans to want to #FreeJamesJohnson and suggest there’s some sort of personal issue at play (there’s probably not). Johnson deserves more minutes than he receives when the team is healthy, but there are understandable reasons for Casey’s reticence to give him heavy run with the starters. Johnson started when DeMarre Carroll was injured earlier in the season, but Ross started the team’s last six games in place of Carroll.

Friday, Casey opted for a bigger look with Johnson at the three, sliding DeMar DeRozan back to shooting guard. The gambit made sense given the opponent. The Miami Heat employ Dwyane Wade, a difficult check and a major off-ball threat that would have been a heavy defensive workload for DeRozan or a massive challenge for the occasionally spacey Ross. They also play a good deal of small-ball – Josh McRoberts was sidelined, making that even more true – with a single traditional big alongside three wings, providing an opportunity for Johnson to switch between three positions depending on where the toughest check was. In addition, the Heat entered play ranking 25th in 3-point attempts per game and 27th in makes, so while Johnson playing alongside DeRozan opposite Hassan Whiteside creates some potential spacing issues, the Raptors wouldn’t be at a disadvantage eschewing the 3-ball some.

Casey handled the rotations masterfully, ensuring Ross or Patrick Patterson was on the floor with Johnson for additional spacing for half of his minutes. He got creative moving Johnson around on defense, called his number on occasion on offense, using him as a secondary ball-handler, and gave him some leash if he stumbled on either end.

The result was Johnson’s best game of the season, a 13-point, five-assist performance that came on 5-of-9 shooting without a single turnover. He only grabbed one rebound but added a steal and a block, with the Raptors outscoring Miami by 12 in his 32 minutes. He remains a strong on-ball defender, and Friday saw him over-help (a team-wide problem Johnson occasionally exacerbates) a little less. Wade had a good night opposite him but Johnson helped force Deng into some struggles, and the team as a whole did a good job contesting threes (despite Gerald Green having zero chill). Johnson’s remarkably creative for a reserve wing and is able to help the offense from the post, on the wing, and in transition, and he might be the team’s best non-point guard passer, especially off the bounce.

Being down a shooter hurts. It does. There’s little way around the fact that spacing gets a bit cramped with a DeRozan-Johnson pairing when Patterson’s not on the floor. But there are ways to play within that confined space, and the best way to break down a tight defense is to spread them back out by zipping the ball around the court. That’s much easier when there’s another strong passer on the floor, like Johnson.

Here’s another example of his passing that also highlights some strong decision-making. Johnson can occasionally try to do too much, but this play – made possible by two excellent efforts from Patterson – saw him make the smart snap-decision to pass up an open three, roughly a 30-percent proposition, for an open two, roughly an 80-percent proposition.

And, of course, there’s always the threat that Johnson can blow up an opposing center.

Damn, close call.

Johnson wasn’t the only role player to contribute in a big way Friday. That’s something that’s absolutely necessary for the Raptors right now, with DeMarre Carroll and Jonas Valanciunas still not back practicing (per Mike Ganter of the Sun) and Kyle Lowry beginning to show small signs of potential fatigue. The roster is thin and the schedule not exactly forgiving over the holiday period. To date, the team’s non-stars have been struggling or, at best, uneven, leading fans to search for answers via trade. Friday was an example of how the burden can be shared when Johnson, Ross, and others are helping carry the load, and if they can maintain that level of play when Carroll and Valanciunas return, the 10-man rotation is suddenly in good shape.

Scola carried the water in the first quarter and finished with 20 points. Biyombo had another massive rebounding night (15) and has strung together a few solid games in a row. Patterson’s shot remains wayward but he’s responded by continuing his strong play on the defensive end (for those who care about such things, he was a team-high plus-18 in 24 minutes).

Ross, in particular, warrants discussion. Casey opting to start Johnson could be looked at several ways: It was a match-up play, it was designed for Ross to help bring some punch to the second unit, or it was a demotion for Ross. Johnson figures to at least start again Sunday to handle Rudy Gay duties, but it’s possible Casey rolls with this configuration until Carroll returns. Whatever the case, he responded by knocking down five triples and scoring 17 points.

Ross was bound to regress to his established levels of shooting, and he’s hit 17-of-37 (45.9 percent) in seven games since Carroll went down. he’s averaging 11.3 points in those outings, too, but far more important has been the improvement in his defensive performance. He’s still not a stopper by any means, but he looks far more engaged, is getting lost in the pick-and-roll less often, and has done well to fight his way back from the corners in transition.

Again, depth players, especially Ross, are crucial to this team staying successful and healthy over 82 games. Friday is such a great example of how much having broader contributions can matter – coming off an overtime loss, on the second night of a road-road back-to-back, against a pretty good team, the Raptors were able to fight through and steal a victory. It’s a marquee win, to be sure, and the Raptors have a handful of them now.

“You gotta give credit to us,” DeRozan said after the game.

He’s absolutely right. And while we’ve focused primarily on role players to this point, DeRozan deserves the bulk of the credit. He scored 30 points on 10-of-17 shooting, added four rebounds, four assists, and two steals, and put the team on his back against a great deal of defensive attention for key stretches. Deng? Not a problem. Defensive ace rookie Justise Winslow? More Urkell than Winslow on Friday. His jumper? Wet.

The win also gives DeRozan his first victory against former teammate Chris Bosh in 13 tries.

“Shout out to Matt Devlin for throwing out the jinx,” DeRozan said.

It’s true that the way Lowry goes, the way the Raptors go. He’s their most important all-around player and had a solid, if unspectacular night Friday. Lowry and DeRozan have talked openly about sharing the scoring load for stretches, and the last few weeks have belonged to DeRozan. The reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Week has remained en fuego, averaging 26.8 points on 50 percent shooting over his last six games, a necessity as Lowry’s shot 35.9 percent over those same games. The two-headed top-scorer is a wonderful luxury, and the Raptors are a really tough team to stop when they’re both going or have support from the complementary pieces.

This was such a good win. That’s pretty much all I’ve got left to say at this point. Enjoy your weekends.

Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images

Previous: Quick Reaction: Raptors 108, Heat 94
Next: Norman Powell assigned to Raptors 905: ‘I’ve been waiting to play basketball’