Raptors 905 98, Westchester Knicks 89 | Box Score
Raptors 905 came out of a lengthy All-Star break much the same way they entered it: On a roll, with some clear areas to continue working on.
The break threatened to disrupt the momentum the 905 had been building over the month prior, but they managed to hit the ground running against the Westchester Knicks on Wednesday. Without the benefit of any Toronto Raptors on assignment, the 905 completely locked down a Westchester team carrying three players with NBA time this season. The Knicks entered 18-14, just a half-game out of the Atlantic Division lead, but the 905 were able to knock them off for a third time in four meetings, yet another encouraging sign in a 2016 full of them.
With the 98-89 victory, the 905 improve to 13-20 overall, 9-8 within their division, and 8-2 over their last 10 games. With the benefit of time and space to digest the season’s first half, the expansion club that was once an early potential laughing stock now looks a legitimate middle-of-the-pack team, a remarkable improvement. Considering how much success they’ve had without Raptors assignees and Ronald Roberts – the team was without their best player for the third time in four games due to a hip contusion – the strong play really highlights the growth at the individual and team level.
Most notable in that growth is Axel Toupane, who’s transitioned from an intriguing long-term, multi-position defensive prospect to a boan fide call-up candidate. He’s made incredible strides in a short time on the offensive end, and he was the primary force for the 905 in building an early lead, scoring 17 of his game-high 20 points in the first half. He shot 6-of-9 from the floor, got to the line 11 times, and threw a ridiculous pass off of a cut to set up Sim Bhullar.
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There was also this ridiculous transition bucket.
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Just as impressive, Toupane spent the first half primarily on Jimmer Fredette, frustrating the All-Star Game MVP into a horrible shooting night. When the 905 moved Toupane on to the wing to help slow Thanasis Antetokounmpo in the second half, Shannon Scott, John Jordan, and Scott Suggs got the benefit of an irritated Fredette trying to shoot himself back into the game.
That wouldn’t happen, and Fredette may have been responsible for sinking the Knicks’ comeback chances. He finished 4-of-21 from the floor and 0-of-8 from outside but never stopped shooting, even as backcourt mate Travis Trice shook off a scoreless first half to pour in 14 points in the second half (and dish 10 assists for the game). With so much of the Knicks’ offense predicated on Fredette bending defenses, opportunities simply weren’t there for Darion Atkins and Gani Lawal, leaving Antetokounmpo to try to clean up broken plays and the Knicks to run plays for Jordan Bachynski.
Bachynski, an All-Star himself, had a solid game with 14 points and five rebounds but dealt with foul trouble thanks in large part to Toupane. His absence let Bhullar roam unchallenged inside, and the 905 did well to get Bhullar easy buckets en route to a 17-point, 11-rebound night.
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Bhullar also flashed a recognition of the attention he was drawing, keeping an eye out for a cutter off the block.
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Despite the gaudy line and plus-13 rating, Bhullar didn’t play particularly well, it was just a really good matchup. He had three turnovers, two of which came because he simply couldn’t bend over well enough to procure a post-entry pass (one was poorly thrown). He also got torched in transition by Bachynski twice in three possessions, leading to the veteran Suggs talking to him, which Bhullar didn’t seem to appreciate and resulted in a few minutes on the bench.
That wasn’t the only example of Suggs providing some much-needed poise. The 905 led by as many as 18 and saw that lead wilt away entirely before finding their footing, and Suggs’ ability to create and hit late-clock looks for himself was paramount to settling things down.
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Greg Smith tried to help in that rgeard, too, but wound up with a 4-of-14 night, bothered by the athleticism of the Westchester fours. He was able to channel Dirk Nowitzki early on.
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The offense wasn’t as polished as the defense Wednesday. The 905 shot 44.2 percent, hit six threes, and got to the line 36 times, but they missed 12 freebies, were non-existent on the offensive glass, and, as usual, struggled with turnovers.
Once again, their defense could look even better if turnovers weren’t an issue, as the Knicks managed 19 points off of 15 turnovers, 12 of them of the high-yield steal variety. Seven of those miscues came in the fourth quarter, helping the Knicks knot things up and take a brief lead through the middle parts of the frame. It’s a credit to the defense that the Knicks stalled out from there, unable to get a clean look inside the arc or outside of it. The Knicks finished the game shooting 40.5 percent and 4-of-21 on threes, and the 905 kept their own glass nearly spotless.
The answer to limiting the turnovers and thereby pushing the defense to near-elite status is unclear. Bringing in Jordan should help, and he and Shannon Scott combined for 19 points, nine rebounds, and 10 assists Wednesday, even sharing the court in a super-small look for long stretches. Neither committed many turnovers (they combined for three), but the 905 still funneled possessions away from them or took up too much clock when they initiated. That’s not new for Scott, who shot 3-of-13 and continues to get no respect from defenses as an off-ball threat, and for Jordan it may be a case of finding a familiarity in just his third game with the team.
That’s really the next step for the 905. They’ve cleaned up so many problem areas and learned to play far more complete games, and they’ve done so mostly without NBA help. Now it’s a matter of eliminating the simple, sloppy mistakes that are preventing them from executing bell-to-bell.
They’ll get another chance in a Saturday-Sunday home-and-home against the 19-13 Canton Charge, another good test.
