Gasol trade huge | Lowry still petulant, but he’s our petulant guy | Looking more and more like Kawhi will resign on short deal | Game 2 tonight!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-4FK983mQY
Of course, defending in the post and at the rim aren’t really the concerns against Golden State, though they help. While the Warriors aren’t a heavy pick-and-roll team, Gasol’s performance in those situations is instructive. Opponents are scoring just 0.88 points per possession when the Raptors trap or double a pick-and-roll ballhandler, per Synergy Sports, and they’re scoring 0.93 points per possession when Gasol guards the pick-and-roll ballhandler, more than a survivable mark for that situation.
When the Warriors ran Curry pick and rolls targeting Gasol in Game 1, Gasol was able to impede his path long enough for his defender to recover. On a couple of occasions, Gasol helped force turnovers, which is where his biggest value on that end might be felt. Playoff opponents have a turnover rate 3.3 percentage points higher with Gasol on the floor, per Cleaning the Glass, as his savvy, anticipation and hands make room for pocket passes an illusion. Some of this is made easier because Gasol doesn’t have to worry about getting back to his man, and Golden State’s lack of shooting with Kevin Durant sidelined is an argument in favor of Gasol being effective in this series.
Look at Gasol barking instructions to Fred VanVleet in the first clip of that series. It’s that communication that makes Gasol valuable, too, and it’s an unspeakably important tool for a defence to have against a team that demands so much switching, scrambling and recovering.
“Well, he’s a really good defender,” Nick Nurse said Thursday. “And a lot of that comes from, I always say a lot of it comes from desire to be a good defender and the want to stay on the court, right? But I think his IQ is really high, he knows how to get out there and he’s shown over the last few games, or maybe more than that, that he’s pretty good when he gets a mismatch on a shooter. He went up in the last series and guarded (Khris) Middleton really well, and when there would be a breakdown, he would end out way out on the floor on those guys. And I thought he did a decent job on some of those guys tonight. Just really good reactions.”
The Warriors never went to that Green-at-centre lineup, possibly in part because they don’t have enough shooting to make the trade-off worthwhile right now. They also started Bell and worked back in DeMarcus Cousins off the bench. Bell is a matchup Gasol can handle, and while Cousins is a forceful scorer and dynamite passer, he’s the type of centre against whom Gasol matches well. Kevon Looney is a more dynamic challenge and played the bulk of the minutes, but Steve Kerr is reluctant to start him, giving Gasol a more comfortable matchup. Some of the best individual net ratings in the playoffs against the Warriors belong to Nene and Enes Kanter, albeit in smaller roles, and the Clippers’ problems with Ivica Zubac came on the offensive end. The Warriors are not a run-centres-off-the-floor team in their current iteration, even as the league’s best offence.
Marc Gasol trade was Toronto Raptors’ other ‘high-risk’, high-reward masterpiece – SBNation.com
In the 56 games before the Gasol trade, the Raptors had the No. 5 net rating in the NBA with the No. 7 offense and No. 8 defense, per NBA.com’s stats page. Toronto was No. 23 in the league in three-point shooting (34.5 percent) and No. 22 in assist percentage (57.8 percent). In the 26 games after acquiring Gasol, the Raptors had the No. 4 net rating in the league with the No. 9 offense and No. 3 defense.
But the offense didn’t actually become less efficient: other offenses just scored that much more efficiently. And Toronto’s offense got better in two key ways. With Gasol in town, the Raptors were the No. 1 ranked three-point shooting team (41 percent) and jumped to No. 4 in assist percentage (65.5 percent).
In their Game 1 win over the Warriors to open the NBA Finals, the Raptors shot 13-33 (39 percent) from three and assisted on 64 percent of their makes. Pretty good. And while Golden State ended up scoring at a rather efficient rate, Toronto’s defense caused problems for the Warriors throughout.
Any worries about whether Gasol would be able to provide a superior level of defense to Valanciunas against high-level foes were answered in the previous two series against the Bucks and 76ers. But Gasol is still showing why Ujiri pulled the trigger on the trade here in the NBA Finals. Look at this large 34-year-old move!
Warriors are trying to trap Kawhi Leonard, but it is more complicated for the Raptors – The Athletic
It is obviously a lot to process in a short period of time, mostly for Leonard but also for the player setting a screen for him. Although Leonard had five assists against the Warriors, none of them was the result of a particularly quick read of the Warriors’ half-court defence. Leonard turned the ball over just twice, good considering his occasional issues with that in the postseason and how deadly the Warriors are in transition, but Golden State’s isn’t a defence that tries to coax a ton of turnovers. The Warriors forced 13.3 turnovers per 100 possessions this year, just 18th in the league. (The Raptors ranked ninth, at 14.8.)
Instead, the Warriors seemed to want Leonard to take uncomfortable shots when they chose not to force the ball out of his hands, and he shot just 5-for-14. (Leonard’s 12 free-throw attempts mitigated that inefficiency.) Through their comments since Game 1, it has been clear the Warriors believe if they clean up the basic stuff, like their transition defence, that the same defensive performance would be adequate or better to take the series. The Raptors had an offensive rating of 109.4 in the half court, an 87th percentile performance, per Cleaning The Glass, but part of that was the result of some, ummm, favourable bounces.
Beyond that, the Warriors rightly believe they score at a high enough rate that lowering that number by even a little bit will be all that is necessary for them to end up on the right side of the ledger.
That, however, is all math. It does not account for the notion, supported by many of his playoff performances, that Leonard can be more dynamic than he was Thursday.
“I don’t think the leg trouble is much of an issue,” Nurse said of Leonard’s injury or injuries, which have only been nebulously defined. “And I’m expecting him to play a lot better tomorrow.”
“I thought we did a decent job overall on Kawhi,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said. “He didn’t have his best game. … We’re under no illusion that we’re going to stop Kawhi. We’re just trying to make it as difficult as possible on him.”
The maestro of load management has been key to Raptors’ playoff success – Sportsnet.ca
In Leonard’s case it has worked, although not without some fits and starts and some mystery. The team and Leonard were tight-lipped about precisely what his condition was — to this day it’s never been publicly acknowledged — or providing firm details about what steps were required to get Leonard back to full health.
When it was announced in the first week of the season that Leonard would miss the second half of a back-to-back on the road against Washington, it was presented as a temporary measure as he built himself up to full strength. Ten days later he stayed home when the team travelled to Milwaukee. Eventually, everyone knew to stop asking: If there was a back-to-back, Leonard wasn’t playing in both games, and if there were any other opportunities to grab an extra day off, chances are Leonard would take it.
Even within the team, there were questions that have only been answered as Leonard has put his foot on the gas in the playoffs.
“We didn’t care that much he wasn’t playing. I was kind of happy about it, to be honest with you,” says VanVleet who typically started when Leonard sat out.
“The only thing is he doesn’t really talk a whole lot so you never really knew when he was or wasn’t going to play and they certainly didn’t post his schedule on the wall so we knew what games he wasn’t going to play.
“A lot of times we wouldn’t find out until five minutes before he went out for the game so halfway through [the season],” says VanVleet. “So I started asking him, ‘Hey man, you playing?’ and I’d get some extra shots up because I knew I was going to start on the second night of back-to-backs.”
Those close to the team acknowledge there were some awkward moments in the early going as Leonard’s reserved personality, sporadic schedule and on-going speculation on where he might land in free agency were hiccups that had to be overcome in the team-building process.
As Leonard took on more and more responsibility in the post-season, the concerns eased. When he played 52 minutes while clearly struggling through discomfort in a must-win double-overtime win in Game 3 against Milwaukee, they evaporated. When Leonard insisted on playing in Game 4 even when several notches less than 100 per cent, his teammates knew he was willing to lay it on the line to help them win a title.
“It all makes sense when you get to this point,” said VanVleet. “Throughout the season we’re all grinding, we’re all hurting, we’re all having dog days.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwnYKC1ptMY
Raptors Over Everything Podcast: Assessing Raptors-Warriors After Game 1 with Chris Haynes – Yahoo
On this week’s episode, Yahoo Sports senior NBA insider Chris Haynes joins the show to discuss the following topics:
Thoughts and impressions after Game 1
Pascal Siakam’s remarkable ascension
Andre Iguodala, DeMarcus Cousins, and Kevin Durant’s status
Kawhi Leonard’s upcoming free agency
Chris Haynes’ media game
The NBA Finals are fun for Raptors star Kawhi Leonard | The Star
Kawhi creates fun, really. His face is being painted on murals, and local businesses are trying to get in the news by promising him free rent or free food or whatever else he doesn’t care about, if he stays. The city is electric, basketball is having its Canadian moment, and it’s all because of Kawhi. Maybe he sees it. It’s not clear how much he leaves his house.
“I appreciate them for their support,” Kawhi said. “Coming in, I wanted to be able to contribute to the team and be able to get them to this point, and we’re doing it so far. I just feel like I did something special for them, just this group, just being able to be the first team to get to the NBA Finals for Toronto.”
Still, the storm is gathering. One report said he would be open to a short-term deal with the Raptors, but the team itself hadn’t heard that, and it ran counter to some of the other noise that is bouncing around this series. Los Angeles Clippers coach Doc Rivers was fined $50,000 (U.S.) for tampering after comparing Kawhi to Michael Jordan on ESPN; that was a public speeding ticket for an organization that has earned plenty of private ones this season, hoping Kawhi will come home.
Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr remembered being on the Dan Patrick show when he was the general manager in Phoenix, and said, “I think he asked me if we were interested in LeBron, when LeBron was a free agent back in whatever it was that he went to Miami. I said if he’s willing to take minimum, we would take him. Dan laughed. And I wrote a $10,000 check the next day.”
Like LeBron, the storm revolves around Kawhi, but he is the calm at the centre, the eye. Game 2 is Toronto’s chance to put real pressure on the Warriors. So much will revolve around Kawhi, and he has figured out every other defence he’s seen so far. Maybe all this fun will affect his eventual decision; maybe this fun is portable. Either way, the decision will come.
But right now, he is living his dream, and Raptors fans are, too. Kawhi is a foreboding figure, and right now, he’s on Toronto’s side.
How Kyle Lowry became the last Raptor standing – ESPN
“HE’S A COMPLETE jackass on the court, and he’s probably one of the best teammates I’ve ever had.”
Raptors guard Fred VanVleet, Lowry’s understudy for the past three seasons, is blunt when asked to describe Kyle Lowry.
Lowry prefers the world only see the hard exterior that he puts on display during press conferences and when he is on the court. But that’s not the person the Raptors know best. VanVleet calls it a “weird dynamic.”
“His teammates love him,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. “He’s the guy that’s feeding them a lot on the planes. He’s inviting them over to his house in Philly, making sure there’s team events he’s in charge of — and funding.”
During his early stints in Memphis and Houston, Lowry had developed a reputation — perhaps undeserved — for butting heads with teammates and coaches. But in Toronto he has grown into the kind of veteran the young players on the team all gravitate toward. For VanVleet — another tough-nosed, undersized point guard, it was natural he and Lowry would grow to form a bond.
VanVleet said their families are close — Lowry publicly shouted out the birth of VanVleet’s second child, Fred Jr., at a press conference after Toronto’s Game 4 win over Milwaukee — and credited Lowry for helping him, after going undrafted out of Wichita State, develop into one of the league’s best backup point guards.
“He’s meant everything,” VanVleet said. “He helps me on the court, off the court. He helps me in a lot of things. He’s taught me a lot, he’s showed me a lot. He’s a great friend. I love him to death. There’s nothing he wouldn’t do for me, and vice versa.
“He’s just got a big, loving heart, man. Under all that antics of him trying to be a tough guy, he tries to portray himself like an a–hole, and he’s just a big teddy bea
Extended Bench
Raptors coach Nick Nurse said before the game that he wanted to run out ten guys and see who stuck. With OG Anunoby still out for at least Game 1, though hopefully available for Game 2, Nurse went with a nine-man rotation: the obvious eight from last series, plus Patrick McCaw.Now, as I warned before Game 1, extending the bench to include even OG comes with risks — if Toronto plays too many bench players together, they’re asking for trouble. Thankfully, although Nurse increased the number of players who stepped on the court, he essentially ran an eight-man rotation, just with McCaw taking over Powell’s minutes early in the second quarter.
This left Powell with about five minutes played, and McCaw with seven.
Now, why Nurse did this is a mystery to me. Perhaps he simply wanted to give the ex-Warrior a shot against his former team. Perhaps he wanted to try as many potentially viable bench players as possible to see what could work. Perhaps he thought McCaw was the better defensive option against the Warriors.
In any case, the results were not promising. Although McCaw stepped into the role Norm had been playing in (and holding his own in, with the team a +2 in Norm’s five minutes), the Raps lost McCaw’s minutes by three. A lot of that might well be noise, but it’s not a surprise that such a result might happen with that swap.
Norm has struggled at times this year, but even he looks great compared to McCaw. The Raptors were eight points worse per 100 possessions (in terms of point differential) with Norm on the court than off this season. With McCaw? That’s a 15 point swing (again in the wrong direction).
Meanwhile, Norm had just come off another famous Playoff Norm series, where the Raptors were 16 points better with him on the court than off. The decision to go away from him (even in a game where he had struggled for the first few minutes) seems a little odd.
In small minutes this seems like a fairly harmless choice, but I suspect I only feel that way because the Raptors won fairly comfortably by the end. If this was a one point loss… well, we’ll deal with that if and when we need to.
In any case, Anunoby should be back soon, and that will further complicate this thought process. I’d hope that if Nurse doesn’t trust Powell to play those minutes, Anunoby takes over all of the eighth man minutes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zx4Nt-BerjA
3. Is FVV the Steph stopper? (Spoiler: No, but…)
When it comes to guarding Curry, the always-concise Leonard might have said it best: “What I like to do is not try to relax.” It was VanVleet, though, who spent the most time matched up with him in Game 1, doing his best to stay alert and attentive for every second that he was out there. He did an admirable job, with the help of his teammates.“It’s not fun,” VanVleet said. “I’ll tell you that much. It’s not easy. But as a competitor, that’s what you love to do. Steph has been one of the greatest players in this league for a long time. I was watching him in the Finals not too long ago when I was in college. So to be out there, just trying to take that challenge has been great for me.”
VanVleet isn’t afraid to pressure Curry full-court, but he can only do that because he knows that there will be help waiting if his aggressiveness backfires. No matter how many times you have seen Curry relocate and hit a 3 after giving up the ball, it is difficult not to relax when you’re guarding him and he passes it off. VanVleet called it a “five-man effort” to stay locked in and not be fooled by all of the Warriors’ misdirection while Curry runs around looking for free space.
“It’s a well-oiled machine,” VanVleet said, “and you gotta be ready to try to just jam yourself in there and kind of disrupt the rhythm as best you can and trust your defense behind you.”
Curry scored 34 points on 8-for-18 shooting in the opener, and he made all 14 of his free throw attempts. The Raptors surely regret sending him to the line as much as they did, but they might take solace in their team success when he and VanVleet were on the court at the same time. In those 25 minutes, Golden State scored 96.3 points per 100 possessions and Toronto scored 121.2 points per 100 possessions. That type of disparity isn’t sustainable, but it’s worth monitoring what those numbers look like as the series goes on.
For Kawhi, extra fun getting his shots in playoffs – ESPN
It’s safe to say Leonard doesn’t have to worry about being stuck in a box any longer. That has been the case for a few years now, after he stunned the basketball world and emerged from relative obscurity — he was the No. 15 pick in the 2011 NBA draft out of San Diego State — to become the best two-way player in the sport.
But he was doing that in San Antonio, playing alongside future Hall of Famers in Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker, and for arguably the greatest coach of all time in Gregg Popovich. Upon arriving in Toronto by trade this past offseason, the franchise was handed over to Leonard, with the goal of spending the 11 months between when the deal was consummated in late July until this summer — when Leonard will be an unrestricted free agent — convincing him Toronto is the place he should stay.
Given how this season has turned out, the sales pitch couldn’t have worked better. The Raptors cruised to 58 wins in the regular season and the second-best record in the NBA (behind Milwaukee). Leonard played 60 games, with Toronto working with him diligently to be as healthy as possible come playoff time. And once the postseason arrived, Leonard turned into a world-destroying force, carrying Toronto past the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference semifinals and the Milwaukee Bucks in the East finals — a performance that has firmly placed him back in the debate of who is the best player in the sport.
Three more wins over the Warriors will make his argument for that top spot close to unassailable. But as Toronto claimed Game 1, Leonard didn’t have the same kind of incredible performance he has recreated time and again during this postseason run. His numbers — 23 points, eight rebounds and five assists — while great by most standards, were rather ordinary by his incredibly lofty ones, including going 5-for-14 from the field.
That Leonard again was caught on camera limping at times during Thursday’s Game 1 — just as he was during the Bucks series — was cause for concern in many quarters even after Toronto’s win.
The only people who seem unconcerned about the state of Leonard’s health, however, are members of the Raptors themselves.
“Yeah, I don’t think the leg trouble is much of an issue,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse said Saturday.
“And I’m expecting him to play a lot better tomorrow.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syUumlerPmY
Kawhi Leonard: ‘It’s More Fun’ Being Focal Point of Raptors Offense This Season | Bleacher Report
As fate would have it, the unexpected laugh let out by a typically stoic Kawhi Leonard at the Toronto Raptors’ media day in September was more foreshadowing than fluke.
Ahead of Sunday’s NBA Finals Game 2, the All-Star forward told reporters Saturday that he’s having plenty of fun in Toronto:
“Obviously, it’s a lot more fun when you’re getting plays called for you and you’re able to live your childhood dream in being able to shoot the ball 20 times a game. The offense is coming toward you, rather than just being out there doing one job. Because when you first come in as a rookie, unless you’re like a top-10 player, you’re really not going to touch the floor a whole lot, or get the offense run through you.
“That kind of throws you off, or for me just like puts you in a box somewhat. You have to figure out a way to have fun. Like I said, being a child, I didn’t envision myself just being in a box in the NBA. But once that time comes, I feel like you’re just having more fun and you’re able to experience the game and grow as a player, making plays, seeing double-teams and finding other guys.”
Leonard spent the first seven seasons of his NBA career in San Antonio. While he was a two-time Defensive Player of the Year, won a championship and was the 2013-14 NBA Finals MVP as a Spur, he had not yet ascended to superstar status.
Draymond Green and Kyle Lowry are the heartbeats of this Finals matchup | theScore.com
If the basketball subtleties that make Lowry and Green great are tough to spot for casual observers, the emotion they display on the court is not. Watch a Finals game for even five minutes and you’ll likely spot both players fervently arguing a call, Lowry needling an official to check the ball to him faster on an inbound, or Green barking and gesticulating into a timeout.
“The energy and emotion that (Green) brings to the game motivates you,” said Raptors guard Patrick McCaw, who spent the previous two seasons with Green’s Warriors. “When he comes to the sidelines yelling and screaming, telling guys to go harder, that motivates you. That same thing, I can say Kyle does it as well. You can’t teach that – being a leader, bringing that emotional side to a basketball game. Guys don’t take it (negatively), guys embrace what they’re saying. They just want to win. If you bring the same energy, that same mentality that (they do), you’ll be just fine.”
Both players have risen to the challenge in the playoffs.
Though Leonard’s heroics have garnered much of the attention in Toronto, it’s Lowry who’s helped pick the Raptors up off the mat at various points this postseason. He set the tone early in Game 2 against Orlando and Game 4 in Philadelphia, then single-handedly turned things in Toronto’s favor late in the third quarter of Game 7 against the Sixers. He averaged 19.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.2 assists on 51-47-84 shooting against Milwaukee, despite a left thumb injury that’s causing him great discomfort.
And while Curry’s explosive scoring has dominated headlines in the wake of Durant’s absence, it was Green’s two-way play that ratcheted back up to heights we haven’t seen from him in a couple years. Since the start of the conference finals, Green’s averaging 15.2 points, 11.4 rebounds, nine assists, 2.2 blocks, and two steals.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPtgHerP4rw
Two big questions heading into Raptors-Warriors Game 2 – ESPN
What’s sustainable about the Raptors’ success?
The Warriors also must figure out what to do with Pascal Siakam, who went out and had one of the best Finals debuts we’ve ever seen. Siakam shot 14-of-17 and racked up 32 points, including an eye-popping 16 points directly against Draymond Green, the defensive spirit animal of the defending champs.
Shout out to any voters who didn’t name Siakam Most Improved Player on their ballots.
But while it’s fair to say that Siakam won’t do that again this series, it’s also fair to assume that Kawhi Leonard and Kyle Lowry won’t combine to shoot just 7-of-23 again — especially if Andre Iguodala isn’t 100 percent going forward. Iguodala is likely for Game 2 following an MRI, but the Warriors are going to be cautious since the injury is in the Achilles tendon area, according to a report by ESPN’s Nick Friedell.
Raptors can defend better than any previous Warriors opponent | Toronto Sun
VanVleet said the Raptors want to avoid allowing Curry to get to the free-throw line 14 times (Curry also fouled out Gasol).
“Some of the traps and clogging the paint on him, some of that stuff was good, but I’m sure they’ll have some adjustments for some of that stuff and we’ll have to adjust ourselves. Obviously we don’t want him to score 34 points, but I think he had to work for some of those and we’ll just continue to keep pushing on him.”
Norman Powell didn’t play much, but says it’s quite tiring trying to keep up with Curry, who is always darting around trying to get open.
“He’s a guy who you not only have to guard with the ball, he’s so crafty, so creative, you have to be so alert whenever he’s going to shoot the ball, he can shoot it from wherever on the floor,” Powell told the Toronto Sun.
“But you also have to pay attention to him when he’s off the ball, running around, coming off screens, he’s non-stop relocating, trying to find the open shot and those guys are trying to find him so you’ve got to stay alert for the whole possession.”
‘They got rings’ Lowry explains the Warriors’ unwavering confidence – Video – TSN
Despite being down a game in the NBA Finals, the Warriors are acting as if the series were tied or they were up. Kyle Lowry explains why they can have that confidence and Nick Nurse also explains Golden State’s innovative defence that has the Raptors’ on their toes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqJ1SUh0dyE
Inferiority, Ujiri and Drake: Inside the Minds of Toronto Raptors Fans | Bleacher Report
Despite all of this, there are two prominent faces representing the franchise who are trying to push the fanbase to think bigger in team president Masai Ujiri, who acquired Leonard in a trade last summer, and Drake, the star rapper who doubles as the team’s official global ambassador and No. 1 courtside cheerleader.
Steve Sladkowski is a member of the Canadian punk rock band PUP. His Raptors fandom goes back to the expansion years, when the Raptors played at a baseball stadium, the SkyDome, from 1995 to 1999.
“What Drake has done to put Toronto on the map has been so big,” Sladkowski said. “It put a focus on Toronto that has never been there before from an arts and culture perspective. Civic pride is important; it’s actually how you become engaged in a city and where you live in many different ways. He’s made it OK to be loud about how much they love the city.”
Drake’s courtside behavior can be a divisive topic among the fanbase. I’ve always been cautious about condoning his involving himself in the game—not because it ever feels inappropriate (I watched Spike Lee sit courtside with the Knicks for years), but because of the fear that his sticking his neck out too far will only haunt the team and add another story to the franchise’s list of embarrassing big-stage moments (I watched what happened to Lee during Reggie Miller’s eight points in nine seconds).
While my discomfort with Drake’s bravado stems from the fear of watching the team embarrass itself again, his attitude combined with Ujiri’s conviction and Leonard’s calming presence creating a permanent change in the mindset of an entire fanbase.
They’re starting to learn to embrace being as confident as the faces of the franchise.
“I feel like people are emboldened by this playoff run,” Sladkowski said. “They’re like, Nah, not this time, not anymore.”
Did I miss something? Send me any Raptors-related article/video to rapsfan@raptorsrepublic.com
