 | Sacramento | 93 | Final Box Score | 108 | Toronto |  |
 B | C. Miles22 MIN, 10 PTS, 1 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 3-9 FG, 2-7 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 0 +/- He hit his first 3 pointer to open the game and you had the feeling this could be another hot-shooting Miles game. But it was a mixed bag for CJ, who hit and missed open shots throughout the game. Give the guy credit for hoisting them up though – Miles shot seven 3’s in 22 minutes. | |
 A | O. Anunoby29 MIN, 11 PTS, 3 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 4-8 FG, 3-6 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 13 +/-This guy’s good man. Apart from the incredible and engaged defense throughout the night, he also continues to shoot with confidence. He hit his first two 3’s, and even when he missed, you just had the feeling it was going in every time | |
 B+ | J. Valanciunas27 MIN, 13 PTS, 16 REB, 2 AST, 0 STL, 3-10 FG, 0-1 3FG, 7-8 FT, 3 BLK, 0 TO, 4 +/-JV had a clear presence against Kosta Koufos inside to start the game, and you could tell he wanted to take it down low every time down the floor. But a poor shooting game limited his impact, which otherwise was pretty decent. A double-double from JV is usually good news for the Raps. | |
 B+ | K. Lowry32 MIN, 16 PTS, 5 REB, 7 AST, 2 STL, 5-11 FG, 4-8 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 2 TO, 4 +/-If Lowry consistently hits off-the-screen and transition three pointers, and executes the pick-and-roll as effectively as he has been recently, this team can be a top-3 league offense. Things cooled off in the second half for Kyle after a hot start, but the offense was simply sublime when his shot was going. | |
 B+ | D. DeRozan33 MIN, 21 PTS, 1 REB, 5 AST, 0 STL, 6-17 FG, 0-1 3FG, 9-12 FT, 2 BLK, 2 TO, 14 +/-We saw some incredible overall offensive production from DeMar early on, with 4 assists in the first quarter alone to go along with 7 points. But he cooled significantly after that. I didn’t like some of his shot selection in the second half, but DeMar’s free-throw shooting (including imaginary-friend-high-fives) still earned him a +14 for the game. | |
 A- | F. VanVleet22 MIN, 7 PTS, 5 REB, 4 AST, 0 STL, 3-4 FG, 1-1 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, 10 +/-Fred did a pretty good Kyle Lowry impression taking a charge in the first quarter, and overall was solid with some big shots down the stretch. It’ll be interesting to see how his minutes will be impacted after Delon takes a bigger role off the bench. What we’ve learned so far this season though – never underestimate FVV. | |
 A | N. Powell21 MIN, 14 PTS, 2 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 5-5 FG, 2-2 3FG, 2-2 FT, 1 BLK, 2 TO, 13 +/-While we once again saw some glimpses from Norm, it’s looking more and more like he’s going to have a Terrence Ross quality to him. Some nights the offense can look lost…other nights, it can look amazing. Today was pretty amazing. | |
 A- | J. Poeltl21 MIN, 9 PTS, 4 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 4-6 FG, 0-0 3FG, 1-2 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, 11 +/-Jakob’s ability to set screens, roll effectively and catch passes going straight to the cup is uncanny. It’s probably the least glamorous thing to be amazing at, but it’s effective. | |
 C+ | P. Siakam19 MIN, 2 PTS, 8 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 1-9 FG, 0-2 3FG, 0-0 FT, 3 BLK, 0 TO, 2 +/-Pascal was active defensively and running the floor as usual, but he still appears to be looking for his identity on the offensive side of the ball. P. Skills generally has shot the ball with confidence, but that confidence shooting appears to be slowly fading. | |
 B | D. Wright13 MIN, 5 PTS, 1 REB, 0 AST, 3 STL, 2-6 FG, 1-2 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 3 TO, 4 +/-Delon continues to ease his way back into the lineup. In his second game back from the shoulder injury, rocking the T-shirt, Delon looked a bit more comfortable. He had a nifty steal in each of the second and fourth quarters, and even knocked down a 3-pointer to help the Raptors get some separation in the fourth quarter. | |
 B+ | Dwane CaseyThe Raptors looked sluggish in the first half defensively, and really didn’t wake up until the fourth quarter. I liked Casey opting to play CJ Miles a bit more (hopefully that’s a sign of things to come), but the Raptors allowed the Kings to hang around way too long in this game. The defensive game plan was pretty bad in the first half, and it took a solid team effort in the latter half to close it out. But a win is a win, especially with your starting power forward out of the lineup. | |
THINGS WE SAW
- The return of VC: In first start at the ACC in 6 years (and coincidentally on the day he got traded 13 years ago), Vince Carter suited up for the Kings at tipoff, much to the delight of the ACC crowd who generally cheered Vince all afternoon long. And Vince looked pretty good overall with some pretty awesome defensive plays. That included a fast-break block on DeMar and some pretty good help defense throughout the game. Carter even blocked JV on a roll to the rim.
- CJ Miles starting: With Serge Ibaka out with a sore knee, CJ Miles was inserted into the starting lineup, making a JV-and-small starting lineup that we’ve never really seen. It was pretty intriguing, and at least offensively, it seemed to work early on. But Miles’ shooting cooled off and we didn’t see him as part of the closing lineup.
- Mixed play from the starters: After a dominating performance against the Nets on Friday night with strong defense, the starting unit showed some weakness defensively early on and let the Kings hang around (the Raps shot 60% in the first, but the Kings shot 68%). And with Serge out of the lineup and the Kings continued hot shooting late, the Raptors had to mix things up down the stretch going with a either Pascal, CJ Miles or Norm in place of Serge.
- Sacramento’s inexplicably hot shooting: The Kings are 4th in the league in 3-point-percentage, but amongst the league’s worst in attempts. With guys like Buddy Hield, Bogdan Bogdanovic and George Hill, there’s definitely an ability for their lineup to shoot and it hurt the Raptors. The Kings shooting was incredible in the first half at 56% from beyond the arc, and overall 60% overall. That kind of soft defense just won’t work against better teams.
- Sacramento’s injuries and their impact: With both Zach Randolph and DeAaron Fox out of the lineup for the Kings, the Kings were seriously shorthanded. But with Carter, along with Kosta Koufos, George Hill, and others, the Kings had enough veterans on the floor to capitalize on Raptor miscues and keep Sacramento within striking distance for most of the game.
