Um…the Raptors won this game. Buy a lottery ticket.
 | Indiana | 96 | Final Box Score | 99 | Toronto |  |
 A | P. Siakam35 MIN, 17 PTS, 7 REB, 4 AST, 3 STL, 6-10 FG, 0-0 3FG, 5-6 FT, 2 BLK, 2 TO, 4 +/- Had to soak up (35!) major minutes tonight with the lack of bigs on the floor but as he’s been doing all year he simply met, and then exceeded those expectations. He drove to the rim when the Raptors needed him too and continues to take some of the smartest shots in the league. | ||||||||
 A+ | K. Leonard39 MIN, 28 PTS, 10 REB, 6 AST, 4 STL, 11-23 FG, 0-3 3FG, 6-9 FT, 0 BLK, 2 TO, 7 +/- Set his season-high for assists with Kyle out and yet still somehow took over this game on his own. His dunk in the 4th quarter was the turning point for this team and trusting his teammates down the stretch WORKED! Oh…the four steals help too. | ||||||||
 A- | G. Monroe22 MIN, 13 PTS, 8 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 6-9 FG, 0-0 3FG, 1-2 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -9 +/- The Pacers don’t have an other-world center, and so they could afford to go small. That meant Monroe didn’t need to play all game despite the injuries, but when he was on he was borderline dominant. He led all scorers with 10 points after the first quarter and gave the raptors EXACTLY what they signed him for this offseason. | ||||||||
 C+ | F. VanVleet31 MIN, 11 PTS, 2 REB, 1 AST, 2 STL, 4-17 FG, 3-11 3FG, 0-0 FT, 2 BLK, 0 TO, 4 +/- I know….you’ll see the B- and think, did we watch the same game? Fred was dominant in the 4th on both ends of the floor including a three to take the lead and some of the best on-ball defense on Oladipo anyone has had all season. Shoutout to Louis…this guy is an elite defender. That being said….he grabbed just one dime and continues to force shots with Lowry out of the lineup. | ||||||||
 C+ | D. Green28 MIN, 7 PTS, 2 REB, 1 AST, 2 STL, 2-8 FG, 1-6 3FG, 2-2 FT, 1 BLK, 1 TO, 6 +/- Oh boy, Green needs a day off..and yet, everyone else is hurt. He just has no bounce in his step and his shot needs a night off. Still gave some awesome veteran leadership down the stretch and hit some BIG free throws late. Him and Fred combined for a brutal backcourt tonight, but they’re pros and they figured it out in the Nick Nurse of time. | ||||||||
 B+ | D. Wright22 MIN, 6 PTS, 5 REB, 4 AST, 0 STL, 2-5 FG, 0-1 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, 0 +/- Delon had a very nice game even if nothing jumped off the board. He led the second unit when he was called upon and did a bit of everything tonight. | ||||||||
 B- | O. Anunoby20 MIN, 8 PTS, 2 REB, 0 AST, 2 STL, 3-7 FG, 2-2 3FG, 0-0 FT, 1 BLK, 0 TO, 1 +/- Little impact other than some decent defense, couldn’t get it going in a tight, tight affair. Still had the motor going and is probably still trying to get over the demons from all those missed threes against Denver | ||||||||
 C | N. Powell15 MIN, 2 PTS, 1 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 1-4 FG, 0-2 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 2 TO, -3 +/- I know he was excited to come back, and that’s great, but not even he could take over for a lacklustre effort from Miles. I’m not going to be too hard on him considering it’s his first game back, but if the shots don’t fall…ever, then what are we doing here? | ||||||||
 B+ | C. Boucher10 MIN, 5 PTS, 2 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 2-4 FG, 1-2 3FG, 0-0 FT, 3 BLK, 0 TO, -7 +/- Incredible rim protector…as long as that’s where the action’s coming. He had three big blocks at the rim and soaked up some minutes without Serge or JV to fill the void. He slid right into the lineup the best he could and showed off his range from deep with a three. | ||||||||
 D+ | C. Miles8 MIN, 2 PTS, 0 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 1-3 FG, 0-2 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 3 +/- Man, I don’t know. Half your team is hurt and you still play under 8 minutes and make one shot? I understand this is a slump…but maybe its a (shhhh, permanent) slump? His defence simply doesn’t make up for the fact that he can’t shoot right now. Please figure it out CJ and get over the GoDaddy curse. | ||||||||
 B+ | L. Brown7 MIN, 0 PTS, 3 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 0-1 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 8 +/- Telling that Nurse went to Zo time and time again over Miles, but he still has such a hard time creating his own shot and made a brutal decision when he tried to flush it home with less than two minutes to go in the 4th. Still, he moved the ball, rebounded well, and earned his playing time. | ||||||||
 Inc | M. Richardson5 MIN, 0 PTS, 0 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 0-2 FG, 0-1 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 1 +/- Not enough to warrant a grade really…missed his two shots when the team needed a spark and Nurse pulled the plug quick. | ||||||||
 A | Nick Nurse Had to battle hard on defense and try a variety of different things including one of the more insane lineups I’ve seen this season to start the 4th that included FVV, Zo, CJ, Kawhi, Siakam…Oof. Still a big win with half his roster in and out of the infirmary. | ||||||||
Things We Saw
- Resilience.
This could have been such an easy game to let slip away down big in the 4th, but the Raps rallied under Kawhi. That’s important for so many reasons but the most important one is that this team can win in a million ways.
- The Pacers are a real-life problem, but a war-torn Raptors team is still just as good at home. This has the look of a fun first or second round series.
- Chris Boucher is NBA ready. He may not fit onto THIS team, but he’s a valuable asset going forward whether it’s in a trade or long-term. His athleticism is shocking at the rim and I can’t wait to watch him develop.
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