Quick Reaction: Suns 113, Raptors 126

FINGER WAVE ALERT! Ibaka may have still been a bit of a ball-stopper (just one assist) but it hardly matters when you make 8 of 13 field goals and block three shots (four if we count that ridiculous goaltending call). This is the Ibaka the Raptors need every single night. Aggressive on both ends of the floor and confident taking open looks instead of dribbling the air out of the ball.

Are we having fun yet? OG was awesome tonight on both ends of the floor. He spent considerable time guarding Booker in the first half and finished four of five from downtown! The more confident he gets the more he’s going to shoot. That may be bad news for Norman Powell (16 minutes tonight) but it’s good news for the Raptors. He’s just so damn strong.

GAHHHHH – The frustration is just so very real. When JV doesn’t score (he didn’t make a field goal tonight!) he really doesn’t do much else and it’s so painful to watch. He was a ghost again in the second half and while the rebounding was strong early on he looked horrifically slow. His stock is trending in the wrong direction almost every single game.

KLOE has officially arrived and it’s so nice to see. When Lowry is at the top of his game he makes this team so much better. He was red-hot from downtown and was barking at everyone, including his teammates. He chewed out JV for not going straight up with the ball on one occasion and was actively seeking out his own shot. This is the Lowry the Raptors need.

Three rebounds and two assists shy of a triple double is incredible for DeRozan. His shot wasn’t falling with as much consistency as usual, and the calls weren’t going his way. So what did he decide to do? Pass. It worked out extremely well. Oh, we also got several “ghost high-five sightings” thanks to the techs the Suns wrapped up and that’s always a good time.

Poeltl will not be stopped. He was awesome off the bench…with the exception of his typical fouls, and he’s become a player you can trust every single time. His ability to catch and finish at the rim is still somehow underrated. He made all three of his shots from the line too!

It’s going to be interesting to see what Casey and the rest of the coaching staff do with FVV once Wright gets healthy. He’s just been so damn good in his new role as number one back-up PG. He’s so unafraid of the responsibility and it’s damn refreshing for a team that lacks aggression off the bench sometimes.

The Raptors shot a ton of threes tonight and Miles was a big part of that. He finished three of seven but it was his confidence that was the most impressive. 15 points in 18 minutes is exactly the type of production the Raptors were banking on when they singed Miles in the offseason.

Yikes. Powell may be trying to do too much with OG taking over in his spit, but either way this was one of the worst games of his season. He was the only Raptor to finish with a negative rating (-14!!!) and missed both his attempts from three. He also coughed up the rock four times in an effort to do a little too much on the offensive end.

Siakam was his usual bundle of energy, but it didn’t translate to a ton of success. He still grabbed six boards in limited minutes and didn’t try to force too many shots.

This was a cakewalk for Casey from the opening tip, but he still managed everyone’s minutes well and repeatedly got the matchups he wanted.