 | TOR Raptors | 115 | Final Box Score | 120 | IND Pacers |  |
 B+ | O. Anunoby43 MIN, 15 PTS, 12 REB, 0 AST, 2 STL, 6-13 FG, 1-6 3FG, 2-4 FT, 1 BLK, 0 TO, -6 +/- OG missed some open 3’s early, leaving something on the table in the first half, but he more than made up for it with his cagey defence and effort plays post-halftime. Standout performance on the glass for the 3rd year product out of Indiana. | |
 B | P. McCaw20 MIN, 5 PTS, 2 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 2-5 FG, 1-2 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, 4 +/- McCaw hit a couple 3s, showed great anticipation on offense, getting his lanky arms and sticky little fingers getting in passing lanes, helping the Raps get out and run when they needed to most. | |
 A | S. Ibaka42 MIN, 23 PTS, 9 REB, 2 AST, 0 STL, 11-21 FG, 1-3 3FG, 0-0 FT, 1 BLK, 3 TO, -13 +/- Ma Fuzzy did an awesome job generating second chance points for this team when they stuggled mightly to shoot the ball early. His sky high activity on glass on both ends, efficient finishing inside and prett stroke from 3 kept Toronto in this one till the bitter end. | |
 A+ | K. Lowry44 MIN, 30 PTS, 6 REB, 9 AST, 1 STL, 10-21 FG, 5-12 3FG, 5-6 FT, 0 BLK, 5 TO, -10 +/- Lock your doors at night. Because if you don’t, Kyle Lowry might just run up your driveway, sneak into your home, and steal your will to live. Even after their energy-draining, historic comeback a night ago, Lowry knew that his team’s decisive advantage lay in their fastbreak offense. Kyle did a great job of pushing the ball in transition and creating opportunity for himself and his teammates while having a stellar shooting night. Unfortunately just wasn’t enough to nab the victory. | |
 B+ | F. VanVleet41 MIN, 21 PTS, 2 REB, 11 AST, 2 STL, 8-18 FG, 1-8 3FG, 4-4 FT, 2 BLK, 3 TO, -13 +/- FVV played with the calm, stoic nature that we’ve all grown accustom to watching on a nightly basis. Didn’t make a mistake all night (aside from his 7 missed 3s) and was the emotional rock the raps needed on what turned out to be a roller coaster of an evening. | |
 A | R. Hollis-Jefferson38 MIN, 8 PTS, 9 REB, 6 AST, 0 STL, 2-3 FG, 0-0 3FG, 4-6 FT, 3 BLK, 0 TO, -3 +/- RHJ is the human embodiment of the word hustle. In order to assign these grades, usually I’ll reference player’s statistics to validate their mark. But with Hollis-Jefferson, that’s almost unnecessary. It’s rare to see a player who impacts a basketball game so drastically with their effort. Saving the ball out of bounds, kicking out to open shooters and laying his body on the line – the man does whatever it takes to win. | |
 B+ | T. Davis20 MIN, 8 PTS, 3 REB, 2 AST, 0 STL, 3-9 FG, 2-7 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, 10 +/- Terrence Davis doesn’t have an extremely long leash with this team, but I’m starting to think maybe he should? While his FG efficiency leaves something to be desired, he plays with an infectious energy and zips around the hardwood in a manner which cannot be ignored when he enters the game. Some players can have a quiet 19, Terrence Davis has a loud 8. | |
 B | C. Boucher14 MIN, 5 PTS, 6 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 1-3 FG, 0-1 3FG, 3-4 FT, 2 BLK, 1 TO, 3 +/- While he’s still figuring out how to control that freakishly long body of his, Boucher puts it to damn good use when he’s out on the court. He was an intimidating presence in the middle of the Raptor’s zone tonight, making it tough for the Pacers around the rim. | |
 Inc | M. Miller4 MIN, 0 PTS, 0 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 0-1 FG, 0-1 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 3 +/- 4 minutes, one missed shot. But it deserved to go in. | |
 A | Nick Nurse Nurse packed the paint all night long and gave Indiana some real problems with his Zone defence. He also had his troops zipping the ball around in a manner that opened up some pretty great looks. Did everything but get the win. | |
Things We Saw
- 4 of 9 rotation guys out of the lineup for Toronto, this team has every reason to quit when they fall on the wrong end of a lopsided run. But they don’t. They lost this game, but the pride and effort they bring to the table each night hasn’t subsided even when getting smacked by injuries. I think that’s going to bode well for them when this team fully healthy.
- Not enough can be said about what was going down on the defensive side of the ball for the Raps in this one. Nurse implemented a tricky zone defense midway through the second quarter which took a while to kick in, but once it did, it seemed to suck all life out of Indiana’s offense, and inject it directly into Toronto’s.
- Disgruntled Raptors fans can go to bed dreaming of the fact that this team is scheduled to play their first ever NBA Christmas day game. Yeah, they lost tonight, but if Raptor’s Christmas basketball doesn’t warm your heart, I’m not sure there’s much else that will.
