Quick Reaction: Raptors 120, Clippers 126

Maple Mamba in LA. He had nine points in the first half, and 15 in the second. He had a curl, cut, finished at least twice. He also does a great job probing, probing, and then taking the ball to the bucket. He’s really showing he, like IQ, can score in a myriad of ways. Late in the fourth, he was what we needed our stars to be. He grabbed the ball on the defensive end, preventing it from going out of bounds (having great hands is an underrated skill), and that play helped him hit the triple on the other end of the floor. Defensively, he showed he can be a speed bump down low.

This team played tremendously without its other superstar and starting centre, but we needed more from Rajakovic’s “face of the league.” He had a great helpside D block in the first half, was tested guarding Zubac at times, but disappeared towards the end of the game when it mattered most. His last three – the one from the left corner – didn’t seem to be released with much confidence either.

Classic give-and-go with Schroder which forced Clippers to force timeout. Had a great steal in the first half to lead a fast break, but IQ couldn’t finish. His defence on Zubac helped the Raps down the stretch too — there was a sequence where Barrett hit his shot, Young stopped Zubac, and Raps regained possession. Plays like these were needed late in the game.

36 lead changes this game, and Schroder responded when needed. In the fourth, Schroder was frustrated by a non-foul as Paul George went baseline, and got the bucket. Schroder answered back. His lone made 3 came at a key point down the stretch too.

The various ways Quickley puts the ball in the basket remain outstanding. Showed he’s not just a scorer, and can create for others with six assists.

Porter played a big role keeping the Raps competitive. He showed some point forward skills too as he dribbled from the perimeter. Most notably, he made a jab step, took two dribbles, and dished it to the weakside corner for a triple. Even defensively, he made Harden miss a shot as the latter tried to attack him one-on-one. Great hustle play in the fourth, diving on the floor for the loose ball. His offensive decision-making can improve a bit — he had a middy that went in, but could have taken it all the way to the basket. On another offensive possession, he rushed the turn around jumper as IQ frantically passed the ball out to avoid a turnover.

Had the biggest bucket of the first quarter, hitting a triple. Had a potential assist in the second quarter, and had a textbook closeout on Powell, and contested the last shot, even though it went in.

McDaniels was a slightly better Boucher this game. He did a good job making Powell miss his shot in the last possession of the first quarter. But we need more from McDaniels.

Nice triple from the best dressed vet. Played a small role in ensuring the Raps remained competitive with the Clippers in the first half.

Boucher gets a C for the and-1 ‘Bonnnn-jourrr’ play in the fourth quarter. That was the only positive play of this game. Boucher remains wildly inconsistent and upredictable. He airballed a triple, had a bad take, and then was too weak to properly go up for the alleyoop, and a timeout needed to ba claled. Later on, he didn’t get an offensive board when the team neded him to. If it wasn’t for a shortened roster, he wouldn’t have gotten so much PT, even with 11 minutes.

Necessity is the mother of creativity. After not being able to contain Lakers sixth man Ben Taylor, Darko faced a healthy, elite Western Conference team. Expectations were tempered on a night of a back-to-back with no Poeltl and Siakam. Darko, however, experimented with different lineups. Despite not having any reliable backup wings, the Raps were competitive for a vast majority of this game. If there’s ever been such a thing as a moral victory, this was it.