 | TOR Raptors | 124 | Final Box Score | 113 | MIL Bucks |  |
 A | P. Siakam38 MIN, 23 PTS, 13 REB, 6 AST, 1 STL, 8-23 FG, 2-8 3FG, 5-6 FT, 0 BLK, 2 TO, 14 +/- Siakam did a good job of initiating his team’s offense as a ball handler tonight. He didn’t have his most efficient night from a shooting perspective, but his willingness to initiate the offense helped open up scoring opportunities for his teammates all night long. There’s a version of Pascal that would’ve sulked after his rocky start to the game, but that guy wasn’t on the court tonight. Great job contributing in multiple areas, and scoring when it mattered most down the stretch. | |
 A+ | F. VanVleet38 MIN, 33 PTS, 4 REB, 7 AST, 2 STL, 12-22 FG, 5-12 3FG, 4-6 FT, 0 BLK, 4 TO, 16 +/- When Fred looks to create off the dribble consistently, he puts himself in the conversation for most potent offensive player on his team. VanVleet set the table tonight with a healthy serving of catch and shoot threes and pesky on ball defense, then put the Buck’s D in a tailspin with his dribble penetration. He took firm control of this game when Lowry limped back to the locker room, and never looked back. | |
 A | K. Lowry21 MIN, 18 PTS, 6 REB, 6 AST, 2 STL, 7-12 FG, 3-5 3FG, 1-1 FT, 0 BLK, 2 TO, 3 +/- Aggressive takes towards the hoop, a red-hot jumper from three, and an appetite for transition – Lowry was seen contributing early and often in this one. He looked fantastic in the first half and when he left the game with and ankle injury in the 3rd quarter, it looked like what his team was losing might be too much to overcome – a testament to the quality of the 21 minutes Lowry played in this one. | |
 B+ | N. Powell34 MIN, 11 PTS, 3 REB, 3 AST, 1 STL, 4-7 FG, 1-4 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 4 TO, 19 +/- Powell didn’t need to boast the scoring prowess Raps fans have come accustom to seeing from him as of late. He only took 7 shots, but he did a great job of filling space and drawing defenders away from the paint, even when he didn’t get the ball. He led his team with a whopping +19 on the evening. O.G or not, Powell plays an immensely important role on this team | |
 A- | O. Anunoby26 MIN, 13 PTS, 7 REB, 1 AST, 1 STL, 5-9 FG, 2-5 3FG, 1-1 FT, 1 BLK, 1 TO, 18 +/- In his first game back after a 10-game hiatus, O.G didn’t show any signs of rust. He played superb defense on Middleton and Giannis, made some nifty moves around the hoop, and didn’t forget how to knock down that trusty corner triple of his. Nurse kept his minutes on the conservative side, but he was fantastic in the time he did play. God it’s good to have him back. | |
 B+ | C. Boucher30 MIN, 14 PTS, 6 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 4-8 FG, 4-7 3FG, 2-2 FT, 5 BLK, 1 TO, 13 +/- At the beginning of this game, Boucher looked downright scared to be standing across the court from the guy who he thought he might look like if he hit the gym in High School. However, after he played through the yips, Slim Duck began to work his usual magic on the court: catch and shoot threes, activity around the rim and blocks galore. His shot blocking played an integral role in Toronto’s third quarter run. | |
 C+ | D. Bembry18 MIN, 6 PTS, 0 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 3-3 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-2 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, -17 +/- Bembry played his usual suffocating defense while out there, and hit all three shots that he attempted in the game, but his team could never seem to get it going while he was on the floor. -17 was definitely not the impression you got from watching him tonight, but he wasn’t one of Toronto’s strongest options on the wing and his minutes reflected that. | |
 B- | A. Baynes17 MIN, 4 PTS, 4 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 2-3 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-1 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -3 +/- In his limited minutes, Baynes did some great stuff out there tonight. A couple soft finishes and hard screens had Raptor’s fans having Marc Gasol flashbacks for hot sec. But a second would be all that they lasted for. Toronto is still very much in the market for a starting center. | |
 C+ | T. Davis7 MIN, 2 PTS, 0 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 1-3 FG, 0-1 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -3 +/- Not much to say about TD’s 1 for 3 in this one. | |
 A | Nick Nurse Down 10 in the first half, this game could’ve easily been a blowout. But thanks to the savvy line up choices by NN, Toronto was able to respond to Milwaukee’s game plan, and counter with several sets that gave the Bucks trouble. Playing small against this Bucks team is a bold move, but it’s a strategy the paid off for Nurse this evening as he avoided that “Who’s starting between Norm and O.G” conversation for one more game. | |
Things We Saw
- Can you figure out this team? One night they blow a double digit lead to one of the NBA’s worst teams at home, the next they decisively beat a Milwaukee team that has real championship aspirations. It’s clear that this Toronto Raptors team has the potential to compete with anyone in the NBA on a given night, but it’s harnessing that potential on a consistent basis that’s proved to be their kryptonite
- Toronto is showing their depth is nothing to scoff at as of late. One storyline that nobody is talking about is how good this team could be if they’ve got everyone healthy for a sizeable stretch of games. Toronto showed it can with without Lowry tonight, but it’s fun to consider their ceiling with everyone in uniform. Names like Yuta and Anunoby aren’t exactly going to break the box office, but this team can play 9-10 deep when fully healthy. It will be interesting to see what that looks like in a couple weeks.
