Pre-game news & notes: Miles and Nogueira return in Dallas

Let’s not preamble much. It’s still technically a holiday, I think, and I did the pre-game, and you’ve all had much too much time to think of the matchup problems that Maxi Kleber presents. Really, I think most Toronto Raptors fans (based on my mentions and the comments) are concerned about a little post-holiday slippage, which is understandable. The Raptors keep talking up taking care of games just like this one, and their record against bad teams (16-1 vs. sub-.500 opponents) says a lot. Still, most fans – of the Raptors and of irony – probably want to see three quarters before they let go of the fear of the Raptors grabbing the 1-seed without playing yesterday only to cough it up the next night.

In any case, the Dallas Mavericks await. Dirk Nowitzki is always a lot of fun. Rick Carlisle is great. And the Raptors should, on paper, be in a good position to make it 13 wins in their last 14 games ahead of a very tough back-to-back in Oklahoma City tomorrow.

The game tips off at 7 on Sportsnet One and Sportsnet 590. You can check out the full game preview here.

Raptors updates
When the game preview came out, the Raptors hadn’t yet placed statuses on C.J. Miles and Lucas Nogueira. Shortly after press time, both players were hit with the questionable tag, which is encouraging. Miles caught an infection after a dental procedure and has missed three games as a result, while Nogueira has been out for weeks with a calf tear and has been nearing a return for some time. The rotation will probably expand to 11 or 12 with both healthy, at least for the time being, and we should know the statuses of each a little closer to game time, so check back for that.

In the interim, a quick look at some of Toronto’s most-used lineups:

The starters: 275 minutes, +19.9 net rating, third among units with 200 minutes or more.
Starters with Norman Powell instead of OG Anunoby: 131 minutes, -11.3 net rating
Bench with Anunoby over Powell [Fred VanVleet, Delon Wright, Miles, Anunoby, Jakob Poeltl]: 59 minutes, +12.6 net rating
Bench [VanVleet, Wright, Powell, Pascal Siakam, Poeltl]: 54 minutes, -23.5 net rating
DeMar DeRozan on, Kyle Lowry off: 160 minutes, +21.3
Lowry on, DeRozan off: 112 minutes, +17.4
Both stars on: 903 minutes, +8.3
Both stars off: 313 minutes, +3.0

Basically, the Raptors have been quite good in a lot of different iterations. With three-and-a-half months to figure out the best rotation for the playoffs (which shouldn’t include much all-bench action), there’s a lot of room to find workable combos here.

UPDATE: Miles and Nogueira are both a go, per Dwane Casey via Eric Smith of Sportsnet.

PG: Kyle Lowry, Delon Wright, Fred VanVleet
SG: DeMar DeRozan, Norman Powell
SF: OG Anunoby, C.J. Miles
PF: Serge Ibaka, Pascal Siakam
C: Jonas Valanciunas, Jakob Poeltl, Lucas Nogueira
OUT: None
TBD: None
905: Bruno Caboclo, Lorenzo Brown, Alfonzo McKinnie, Malcolm Miller

Mavericks updates
Rick Carlisle is rolling with a rotation that pretty much is what it is until reinforcements come back from the injured list. Down to 10 players plus their two-ways, Carlisle has kept things fairly tight and leaned heavily on bench groups that feature as many as three point guards. It makes for an interesting matchup for Toronto, one that starts big with a few options to throw at Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan and then skews smaller in the second unit, providing a window for Star-and-Bench groups to potentially dominate. The Raptors playing with an expanded rotation may eschew those staggered lineups in favor of keeping the all-bench unit going, and it will be an interesting challenge for a Raptors bench that thrives on forcing turnovers to play against an opposing bench with multiple established ball-handlers.

If you’re looking for where and when the Mavericks do their damage, look for their own Star-and-Bench group. Dirk Nowitzki with the three bench guards and Dwight Powell is a fivesome that’s obliterated opponents to the tune of 37.4 points per-100 possessions in a 124-minutes sample. They’ll be a fun challenge for the Raptors’ youthful second unit, with Pascal Siakam and Jakob Poeltl likely seeing time on the Hall of Famer in those scenarios.

The starting lineup, though? Buzz, your starters…woof. They’ve been rolled by 20.7 points per-100 possessions over 130 minutes, the worst mark of any group to play 100 minutes together in the NBA this season.

PG: Dennis Smith Jr., J.J. Barea
SG: Wesley Matthews, Yogi Ferrell, Devin Harris
SF: Harrison Barnes, Kyle Collinsworth
PF: Maxi Kleber, Dwight Powell
C: Dirk Nowitzki, Salah Mejri
OUT: Nerlens Noel, Seth Curry, Dorian Finney-Smith, Josh McRoberts
TBD: None
Texas: Jonathan Motley

Assorted

Voting for the NBA All-Star Game is now open. You can refresh yourself on the voting procedures here. Make sure to hit that hashtag #NBAVote for DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry (separately – double-player tweets don’t count).
Raptors 905 are in Delaware for a road game tomorrow, their last before a three-game New Year’s homestand. Bruno Caboclo and Alfonzo McKinnie remain on assignment as a result. Malcolm Miller and Lorenzo Brown are also with the 905.
These are mostly In Case You Missed It items from just before Christmas:
- All Lowe Post podcasts are must-listen, but yesterday’s edition, featuring Dwane Casey, is even more so a must-listen for Raptors fans. Zach is an excellent interviewer and Casey a tremendous subject. Really fun half-hour.
  Lowe Post podcast: Dwane Casey on revamping the Raps, coaching in late-80s Japan, karaoke go-tos, the ’11 Mavs, more: https://t.co/YHEQnZjSLx
  — Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) December 23, 2017
- Over at The Athletic, I wrote about how the Raptors could get even more out of C.J. Miles. Uhh, obviously not tonight, they can’t. RR readers can get 20 percent off a subscription at this link.
- Read my good son William on DeMar DeRozan. Also, it was Will’s birthday on Saturday. Go give him some love on Twitter if you haven’t already. He’s off for a few days.