Quick Reaction: Raptors 128, 76ers 94

Easily the second best Raptor on the night after DeMar. He protected the paint on rotation and his some key shots to help extend the lead. Early in the second half Serge drained two big three pointers from the wing to help extend the lead give the Raptors an increased comfort level.

Norm’s statline won’t jump out to anyone, but his fingerprints were all over the Raptors victory. It was Norm who was assigned the difficult task of chasing JJ Redick around screens and off of the three-point line, and he played his part to near perfection. Redick struggled to get his shot off and rarely found open room.

Late in the second quarter we saw Jonas go down in a heap grabbing his ankle, having landed on Dario Saric. He got up and kept playing for a few minutes, still looking relatively agile. Unfortunately Jonas was diagnosed with a sprained ankle at half time and did not return. Prior to leaving the Jonas had had some trouble keeping up with a stretch big like Saric, but still looks a step quicker than last year.

It’s only two games, but we have yet to have the full KLOE experience. The end of the third quarter brought glimpses of it during the return of the Lowry + Bench unit, but he just felt a little off to me tonight. It was during that stretch that he appeared to find his three point shot. His stats look better than

What a performance for a flu-ish DeMar tonight. He was guilty on opening night of over-passing and not creating enough offense for himself. Tonight saw him find a much better balance. He attacked the 76ers at will, hit all kinds of mid-range shots, and hunted for contact on jumpers and in the paint. Once he established his own shot he then use the extra attention he was drawing to open up the game for his teammates. A beautiful performance.

Delon was the Raptors’ most consistent point guard tonight. He hounded opponents and came away with some big blocks, while also forcing opponents into difficult decisions with his length and timing. Would have had a much higher number of assists if a few shots simply fell, but the key was that he helped create open looks. Playing against Delon looks exhausting.

Low minutes outside of garbage time, but that can be said for almost every Raptor since the game was over a few minutes into the third quarter. Didn’t have his normal touch on his shot today, but moved the ball relatively well and competed well on defense.

Flashy plays are often few and far between for Poeltl, and then he has a game like tonight. Huge blocks that led to fast-break opportunities, lots of dunks off pick-and-rolls, and great timing on rebounds. Jakob is a steady presence with a high basketball IQ. The Raptors are spoiled with their youthful talent to the point that Poeltl can sometimes get forgotten.

Two Legs had about as a good a debut for Toronto as one can have. Tough to follow-up that type of performance. While he won’t be as consistently good as he was on opening night, he is also not nearly as bad as he was tonight.

When the Raptors went with the all-bench unit when the game was easily in hand during the fourth quarter, we finally saw Two Legs find his game a little. He faked a behind the back pass to get to the rim for a lay-up, and then drained a three from the wing.

Surprise start to the second half due to the absence of Jonas, which was more about keeping Poeltl with the bench unit than anything else. And yet, Bebe provided some great minutes to start the half. Whether it be grabbing an offensive board for a put-back, setting the screen and diving for the alley—oop, or getting a steal and running the court for a dunk. Great performance for him.

I feel like I need to know the story behind his face tattoos though.

I was high on OG prior to the draft but never once believed he could fall to 23, yet here we are. He is everything I was hoping for and much more. While he defense is largely as advertised, what has surprised me the most is his passing and quick decision making. I continue to believe he can be a special player as the game continues to slow down and he continues to speed up as he recovers further.

Pascal went from emergency starter last season to garbage-time warrior to start this season, and he’s clearly been passed in the rotation by OG. But he’s far better than a garbage-time player should be.

His speed and switchability remain intriguing. I expect that we’ll get some good looks at him in the G-League again this year.

The human victory cigar was lit tonight, and was highlighted by a steal and assist. Bruno finishing a game is the franchise doing the big-balls dance for five minutes straight. The Raptors deserve a fine for taunting the 76ers.

And yet, I remain intrigued.

I know that many people hate Casey, and I myself have previously advocated in years past for him to be let go, but he has been very impressive to start the season. I’ve loved the rotations that he has used, including showing a high level of trust in the young players.

He has certainly had his faults during his time in Toronto, but he has grown and improved in each of those areas. Established veterans and unproven youth all on the same page, and each one buying into an almost completely different system on offence.