Quick Reaction: Raptors 83, Pacers 100 – Series Tied 2-2

I almost feel bad giving Scola a bad grade, because I really don’t blame him. Casey is doing him no favors not only starting him, but leaving him in for far too long to start each half. And the threes he missed were open. But this was all kinda of bad.

Did a pretty solid job on George with one or two exceptions. That alone would have been enough, but he also knocked down open looks (the only Raptor to do so) and made a few hustle plays. More of Carroll at the four in three-wing sets, please.

Why, exactly, did he only get seven attempts? I know the issues with simply dumping it into the post, but how little they looked for improvised post-ups from the pick-and-roll was shocking, and they basically ignored their interior edge. He responded by having a pretty poor outing in other areas. Note: I’m seeing most disagree with this grade. I’ll have to focus in when I rewatch, but I really didn’t think he played well beyond making the most of limited touches. But I’ll be sure to reevaluate.

Another tough shooting night for Lowry, and unlike the last two, he wasn’t able to make up for it with his usual KLOE-ness. Didn’t have the best luck with fouls, and that rendered him a little passive on Hill. Not his best showing. And no, I don’t know anything about the elbow – he’s healthy in my books until I hear otherwise.

I gave DeRozan a C+ after Game 3 and got the usual “Blake hates DeRozan” and “Blake overlooks DeRozan’s flaws” duelling comment threads. You guys go ahead and have at it. This was awful. Shot selection, turnovers, decision making, and by the end even his body language was bad. I refuse to write a player this talented off for the series, but my confidence is hanging on by a thread.

If Casey is resigned to Patterson off the bench, maybe you give the rangier Thompson a shot starting at the four? He’s a better matchup for Turner, at least.

I’ve had a few questions about Johnson maybe seeing time. I don’t think so – he was really bad down the stretch, and so long as Carroll is doing a solid job on George, he’s relegated to garbage time duty. Sorry, Bloodsport Nation.

One of his worst performances in recent memory, he wasn’t able to bring his usual spark off the pine. Bad showing aside, I still think he should be playing more, but damn, he’s got to do a better job helping out on the glass.

Thought he did a good job against the Pacers’ reserve guards, but when his shot isn’t dropping, I totally get why people look and ask “why not Norm?” That spacing is important, still, but it’s ugly when the shot’s off.

At least one regular had some energy and did work on the glass. But dude, why are you getting in Mahinmi’s jersey on a face-up from 22 feet? Sag back and let him fire away.

Missing three shots in two minutes is a nice way to get those playoff reps in rapid-fire, I guess.

Who was this?

He was the only player in the 10-man rotation with a positive plus-minus. Shocking, right? Sure, he missed an open momentum corner three, but there’s very little not to like here. He’s solid on Ellis, Lawson, or Stuckey and could spot in on Hill, and he should be an early sub when “energy” appears to be the problem.

I think it’s fair to say I’ve generally been more pro-Casey than most, and when your team comes out and plays this poorly, you have to look at the individuals, too. But Scola’s way-too-long hook, the icing of Powell for so long, keeping Ross in with the smaller group late when you didn’t need the spacing, not going for a 2-for-1 after a long review, disorganized sets out of timeout…there was a lot to dislike here. He responded well in Games 2 and 3, so let’s see how he does for Game 5.