So, a basketball game is happening today. Neither team has anything on the line; in fact Raptors fans are more likely to pay attention to the results that determine their first round playoff match up, but a basketball game is occurring nonetheless! Toronto close their regular season on the road against a Minnesota team that is rolling out a carcass of a lineup as they limp towards the end of their season.
The Timberwolves have long since bowed out of the Western Conference playoff race and are without over half of the regular rotation, while the Raptors are locked into the second seed for the playoffs that begin this weekend. So, what can we look forward to tonight?
Karl-Anthony Towns has been on a tear during the final stretch of the season. Since the All-Star break, Towns is averaging 28.1 points, 13.4 rebounds, and shooting an 42.9 per cent from three. Towns’ ability as arguably the most versatile scoring big man will present the Raptors with a defensive assignment that they will likely see come playoff time. Al Horford, Brook Lopez, and Nikola Vucevic all are scoring threats from the outside, so it will be interesting to watch how Nick Nurse gameplans against an even more dynamic centre.
It will also be a final run for Toronto’s bench players to get significant minutes prior to the playoffs. This will likely be the focus of the night. Fred Van Vleet has been impeccable since returning from a thumb injury, while Norman Powell has staked a claim to feature more prominently in the rotation as of late. ‘Playoff Norm’ has been one of the few Raptors over the years to exceed expectations come April; this year he has built up some momentum even earlier than usual. In his last seven games, Powell is scoring a hair under 12 points per game and shooting an obscene 62.5 per cent from deep. Players 8, 9, and 10 in the playoff rotation must be relied on to knock down open looks.
VanVleet finds Ibaka for the two-handed jam! #WeTheNorth pic.twitter.com/XgCnEgAqeP
— NBA Canada (@NBACanada) April 6, 2019
As the great Louis Zatmann broke down last week, Van Vleet and Serge Ibaka’s blossoming relationship is now the fulcrum of the new-look bench. It will be interesting to see how the two operate against a Timberwolves lineup that does have some feisty on-ball defenders. I really want to see the FVV/Ibaka duo to stress the big man defender into tough decision-making situations during each pick-and-roll opportunity. The Timberwolves frontcourt isn’t fleet of foot and it will provide a great chance for Van Vleet to start getting downhill quicker than he has recently.
Nurse can really approach this game in two ways: finalize his playoff rotation or give the everyone a night off and let the young guns loose. I’d prefer the latter just to simply avoid anything catastrophic (envision the fan vitriol if Danny Green’s thumb injury against Orlando last week was more serious). Plus, who wouldn’t love to see the All-NBA G League duo of Chris Boucher and Jordan Loyd get some run now that the 905’s season has finished! The Raptors aren’t going to accrue ‘rust’ just by virtue of having an extra two days off. Lowry and Green have nagging injuries. Let’s all save it for the weekend, okay?
Game Info
TV: TSN | Radio: TSN1050 | Tipoff: 8pm EST
The Line
The Raptors are a 6.5 point favourites. O/U: 229.5
Raptors Updates
Patrick McCaw (thumb) is out.
PG: Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet, Jeremy Lin, Jordan Loyd
SG: Danny Green, Norman Powell, Jodie Meeks
SF: Kawhi Leonard, OG Anunoby, Malcolm Miller
PF: Pascal Siakam
C: Marc Gasol, Serge Ibaka, Chris Boucher
Timberwolves Updates
Robert Covington (knee), Luol Deng (Achilles), Taj Gibson (calf), Derrick Rose (elbow) and Jeff Teague (foot) are out. Jerryd Bayless (ankle) is questionable.
PG: Tyus Jones, Jared Terrell
SG: Josh Okogie, Keita Bates-Diop
SF: Andrew Wiggins, Cameron Reynolds
PF: Dario Saric, Anthony Tolliver
C: Karl-Anthony Towns, Gorgui Dieng
