Coming into this game, the Raptors knew they’d have to be creative on offense to find spaces to succeed, and they knew they’d have to be able to find extra possessions even after that creativity, because Anthony Davis would be roaming the paint.
In the first half of tonight’s game between the Lakers & the Raptors, the latter rebounded over 50 percent of their own misses. A fervent pursuit of the ball, wherever it might be, however it might come off the rim – that was what fueled the Raptors early lead. Jakob Poeltl, Davion Mitchell, Ochai Agbaji, Chris Boucher, Jamison Battle, and Jonathan Mogbo were the creators of the extra possessions. A couple starters, but a lot of guys who exist on the margins busting their ass and getting into the thick of it to build out a 26 to 11 advantage on the glass.
Regarding Davis, stopping him, slowing him down – well, the Raptors struggled immensely. Davis had 19 points at halftime and did so while getting to the line for 10 free throws. Whether it was a post touch that got beyond Poeltl, or a back-side lob attempt that a guard had to try and blow up — sending Davis careening first and to the line second — the Raptors had to be rough and tumble to compete. The fouling is par for the course, of course.
While Poeltl couldn’t keep the clamps on Davis — who typically requires teamwide coverage — he did help the Raptors find their feet on offense. Poeltl, who is one of the NBA’s leaders in screen assists, carved out gobs of space for his ball handlers, took pocket passes in stride — even one from Gradey Dick — to finish at the bucket, and even scored over a couple mismatches. Agbaji was similarly excellent as a tertiary option – cutting, filling, hitting a couple triples.
The Raptors have stayed in games using RJ Barrett as an innings-eater to soak up attention and hoping that their role players could score efficiently, and the Raptors managed to keep the Lakers at bay through 24 minutes with mostly that approach. Dick took the difficult shots and dragged defenders across the court – although, less effectively in this half than many that came before it. The team overall ran, fast, and toward the bucket.
Immanuel Quickley — who too often killed his dribble above the free throw line and had to cast out a line repeatedly to reset the offense; too often moved away from contact while trying to finish at the rim — well, he’s still in the first couple steps of his NBA season, and was searching for his footing. Things could’ve gone better for the Raptors, and they still took a lead into the second half.
The third quarter went differently to start. Dick hit a catch and shoot three, then a pullup triple, then Poeltl gobbled up an offensive rebound before finding Quickley for a catch and shoot triple. 9 rapid points, and coming from some of the big names on the roster. A Raptors team that shot 5/17 in the first half, and without their shooters stepping up, took it up a notch to start the second. However, once Dick & the wheel-greasers (Poeltl & Agbaji) exited the floor, the Raptors offensive pace slowed to a crawl.
Where the Raptors would look to enter the ball to an elbow hub, there was Bruno Fernando. Where the Raptors would look to find the baseline cutter, there was Davion Mitchell. A mismatched lineup that saw Barrett & Quickley spending a lot of time dribbling the basketball and very little happening with them, resulted in an 11-2 run for the Lakers who took the lead. Davis was forced to leave the game with an apparent eye injury, and the Raptors completely squandered an opportunity to put the screws to a Lakers team that was down their best player. All the problems that Davis presented were no longer present, and the Raptors were left with their own failures.
From controlling the game comfortably to trailing heading into the 4th.
This isn’t to say that the Raptors didn’t battle all night, they did. They battled even as the Lakers slowly increased their lead to start the fourth quarter. The Raptors had 6 players reach double digits and four of those players shot 50 percent or better from the field in doing so. They had the scoring from a lot of different places, they had the rebounding from a lot of different places. What the Lakers had though, was LeBron James (who finished with 16 assists) to commandeer the offense and assure that possessions would lead to good shots.
The Raptors just didn’t get enough from their two main guys, and Quickley was quite poor in particular. They had no careful hand on the wheel guiding the vehicle through the storm. James made sure that Reaves got touches when he started popping off. Dick canned back-to-back triples and he didn’t register a single field goal attempt after that. Boucher, ever the agent of chaos, was the only player who found his own offense efficiently in the final frame and finished with 18 points on 9 shots.
The growing pains aren’t just for the rookies, they’re for the likes of Barrett, Quickley, and Scottie Barnes as well. This game in Los Angeles was a sobering reminder of what type of focus and execution it takes to close out a game. There’s work left to be done, but that’s what this year is for.
Have a blessed day.
