Raptors 905 106, Westchester Knicks 108 | Box Score
Assignees: Fred VanVleet, Bruno Caboclo (905), None (Knicks)
When Raptors 905 were blown out at the Air Canada Centre on Tuesday, head coach Jerry Stackhouse seemed oddly at peace with it. He had warned his team that they weren’t quite as good as their record and that, despite a No. 2 ranking in defensive efficiency, there were warning signs that they needed to tighten things up. Playing on an NBA floor, then, was a nice reminder of where each player wants to go but also that they’re not there yet. The hope coming out of such a game would be that the wake-up call locked the defense back in and set the team right back to their winning ways.
The way things started out, it looked instead like the 905 would only have a chance to respond better to an early hole. A buffet of decent looks refused to drop as the team shot 21.9 percent in the first, while the visiting Westchester Knicks found a quick groove, opening up a 25-14 lead out of the gate despite seven early turnovers.
Trailing by as many as 13 in the second quarter, it looked like the 905 may be losing control once again. An erratic half to that point was cause for the heart to skip a beat on any pass, let alone one like the difficult skip pass Bruno Caboclo threw to Fred VanVleet waiting in the far corner. When VanVleet corralled it and sank the ensuing three, it sparked a much-needed mini-run to close the half. Caboclo would pass up a transition three to attack the rim on the next possession, and Yanick Moreira would put the 905 within a point at halftime with an offensive rebound and bucket off a tough VanVleet miss.
Looking to carry that momentum into the second half, Stackhouse changed every non-assignment starter, and that group responded by playing the Knicks tight out of the break. That worked for the most part, as the 905 shot 62 percent over the final three quarters against a strong, athletic defensive outfit. Stackhouse continues to be aggressive tinkering when things aren’t working, a luxury he has with the roster and one he’s used well.
“That’s part of what we do. We’ve got a lot of guys that can play a lot of different positions, a lot of versatility,” Stackhouse said after the game. “It’s not about the lineup, it’s about us being who we are and being able to close out games.”
The late-half sequence seemed to energize Caboclo and VanVleet, in particular, as both shook off quieter first halves. Caboclo would nail three mid-range jumpers in a row at one point in the third quarter to finish with 10 points on 10 attempts, and VanVleet would score nine of his 16 points and four of his 10 assists in the third.
“I felt good, man,” VanVleet said of his turnaround. “I was so bad in the first with the fouls and a couple turnovers, so I think I hit rock bottom there pretty quick. I take pride in being mentally tough and being able to respond, and kinda leading the team with good energy. I think me being able to bounce back and made some good plays kinda carried over for a few guys, and we got it rolling.”
As a team, though, the 905 couldn’t trim the lead, as the Knicks shot 54.5 percent in the quarter and nudged their lead back to three. The back-and-forth bled into the final quarter, which made for some really exciting basketball despite a paucity of energy from the stands. Plus, it’s always fun when Brady Heslip goes on a heater, and he opened the fourth with a pair of threes in short order. That helped keep the 905 afloat as the second-half starters got some rest, but the Knicks were able to edge that lead back to eight before Axel Toupane went on a personal 5-0 run to make it a one-possession game with a little under six minutes to go.
That set up a serious close-out scenario, one the 905 have done well with for the most part so far this season, and one that’s always good experience for VanVleet and Caboclo. Toupane who kept cooking in support, dropping 11 of his team-high 17 points in the final quarter, VanVleet shifted his focus to the playmaking side, setting up Edy Tavares for some looks around the rim, and then Caboclo got involved, pushing a nice touch pass in transition E.J. Singler’s way for a go-ahead three, giving the team their first lead since the opening minutes. Tavares would later hit a pair of clutch free-throws, and the 905 defense would force a shot-clock violation after a pair of Knicks possessions resulted in tough late-clock makes.
Because the game hadn’t been messy enough through 47 minutes, the final minute saw the teams trade out-of-bounds turnovers – the Knicks throwing one away in transition and the 905 losing one on a baseline feed from Singler to Tavares – and then Chasson Randle drew a foul on a drive to put the Knicks back ahead. A tough Caboclo look from mid-range came up short and Tavares was whistled for a phantom foul on the ensuing rebound, but the ball does not lie, and Keith Wright missed both. VanVleet then got to the line, splitting a pair to tie it up and giving the Knicks the ball with four seconds to play.
Former Milwaukee Bucks draft pick Damien Inglis had his number called, and when Tavares turned away his layup attempt, it looked like the game was headed to overtime. But Wright was in the right place at the right time, getting a hand on the rebound and tipping it in just ahead of the final buzzer. The game came down to split seconds and a few inches, and the 905 wound up on the wrong side of the margins.
“It came down to the last few possessions,” VanVleet said. “Came up short on a couple of possessions and they were able to capitalize it. It’s a part of it. You get an unlucky bounce sometimes. You’ve gotta be able to bounce back.”
The 905 will get that chance to bounce back in Westchester on Friday, and that type of quick turnaround has proven valuable for the franchise in their first year-and-a-half. With the focus falling heavily on learning from mistakes and improving in scenarios exactly like this, a loss doesn’t sting nearly as much as it could if the team and the players learn from it.
“It’s a tough break, a good learning experience. The good thing about it, we get the chance to get right back at it tomorrow,” Stackhouse said. “That’s what this is for. That’s what this league is for, is for our guys to get better, for Fred and Bruno to get that type of experience.”
Whether or not the team can shake off back-to-back losses, this one a heartbreaker, like they shook off a slow start will be interesting to see. At 10-4, Stackhouse continues to keep the longview in mind, and if the 905 respond well Friday, Thursday will be put behind them quickly.
Notes
- Caboclo seem likely to stay with the 905 for Friday’s game. VanVleet could go either way, as even though the parent club’s in Utah, there’s still enough time for him to join them with a late (or early) flight. The plan doesn’t include a lot of road games for him and the Raptors would only have 11 bodies without him, so don’t be surprised if he gets recalled and meets the team in Utah. That’s not confirmed though, and nobody seemed 100-percent certain what the gameplan was in the immediate aftermath of the loss.
- Here’s a great quote from VanVleet when I suggested he’s too hard on himself sometimes: “Somebody’s gotta be. I’m my worst critic. Sometimes I can get in my own head, and I think tonight I was able to just flush it and start fresh in the second quarter.”
- Damien Inglis is somehow still just 21 years old, and he looks bigger and smoother than he did at this level a year ago, although his foot speed hasn’t really improved. Losing his entire rookie season to injury was a tough break, but the former No. 31 pick may still have a bright future. There aren’t many prospects this young playing this well at the D-League level, but he’s a little tough to project given he doesn’t have the quickness to make the most of his long frame.
- That Stackhouse hadn’t received a technical foul through 13 games was somewhat disappointing given his joke before the season that he planned to “cut a check for a G” to cover up to 20 of the $50 fines. His T-less streak looked to be in serious jeopardy in the first quarter, as a terribly sloppy game both ways devolved in large part due to some curious calls against either team.
- That included a delay-of-game warning on Caboclo after he simply passed the ball back to an official after being whistled for a travel. It was weird.
- An obvious double-dribble that went uncalled midway through the fourth was so egregious I thought Stackhouse was going to run on to the floor and just take the ball.
- He ultimately managed to avoid it and remains technical
- Coming off of a D-League record 15,011 in attendance at the Air Canada Centre on Tuesday, this one felt especially empty at Hershey Centre. 1,184 came out for this one, a decent crowd but well below the team’s average.
- The 905 are back in Mississauga for a four-game holiday homestand after that, and if you want to check it out live, you can go to this link and use the promo code REPUBLIC905 all season long, as the 905 are hooking RR readers up with discounted tickets.
