The Raptors went on a 13-2 run to close out the first half against the Cleveland Cavaliers and never looked back.
IQ popped up for a rare mid-range jumper, just like he did in their last match-up, as he was given tons of space to operate in. BI tipped a defensive board to IQ, fuelling a transition lay-up to inch within four points.
As Will Lou alluded to in Hello and Welcome, Shead continued to touch the paint like a Dulux employee. He got inside and assisted Mamu and then got a paint two of his own. BI’s two mid-range jumpers closed out their run before halftime.
BI had the most notable performance of the night with 37 points on 15-for-30 shooting on the nationally-televised NBC broadcast, but what was, perhaps, even better was the dismantling of Evan Mobley before our very eyes.
We are close to the quarter-season mark and yet perception is not changing as quickly as reality. Sure, the Cavs may have a depleted roster, but they are not who they once were. Success for the Raptors maybe new and still fleeting, but proved to be a much better team.
Just as the city that Mobley plays for is no longer considered a global industrial hub, he is no longer the feared DPOY that the American basketball media made him out be.
The dismantling, the deindustrialization of Mobley started from the outset. Scottie squared his body up in the paint and easily scored on him. With the game tied at 8-8, Scottie walled up Mobley, making it hard for him to drive. That allowed Ja’Kobe Walter (who had his first start of the season) to come help and Mobley simply toppled over … like Rockefeller’s Standard Oil. Then, Scottie easily shot over the DPOY’s 6-foot-11 frame.
In the second quarter, Barnes half-heartedly faked a pass from the perimeter and made mince meat out of his rival who was drafted one spot before him. This only gave more fodder, more raw material for Cavs slander pods.
But it wasn’t just Scottie doing the dismantling. Mamu had back-to-back 3s in the first quarter, and Mobley couldn’t close out early enough to contest Mamu’s corner 3. During the Raps’ 13-2 second quarter run, the Dulux employee confused Mobley so much that he had no idea where Mamu was – whether he was still in Georgia or at Scotiabank – and scored an easy bucket inside.
The Raps built momentum going into halftime and BI kept it going in the third. His two-handed dunk built a 10-point lead, earning him the “Notorious BI3” nickname by Matty D on the Canadian broadcast. Ingram’s third quarter was as smooth and harmonic as the “Notorious Thugs” chorus: “It’s Bone and Biggie, Biggie/Let’s ride, let’s ride, let’s ride …”
BI looked like KD had been acquired by Toronto in free agency. He hit a fall-away mid-range jumper as he drew an and-one. He made a triple to cap off a 8-0 run towards the end of the third quarter and forced a timeout.
It was a smooth operation as they built a 12-point lead. Crisp perimeter passing after CMB grabbed BI’s missed heat check. Shead hit a three and had another paint touch before assisting Mamu. Walter pestered Tyrese Proctor full court and forced a turnover. A frustrated Thomas Bryant was called for a flagrant after getting in a wrestling match with CMB (why someone would want to do that eludes me).
The double-digit lead allowed Darko to throw on a Shead – Walter – Agbaji – Barnes – Poeltl lineup to start the fourth. Battle made a 1-minute-and-35-second cameo appearance, but the Cavs finally respected him like a featured artist. Shead touched the paint after a get action with Poeltl and found Walter in the left corner, forcing Donovan Mitchell to close out. That forced two-way Chris Livingston’s hand in fouling Battle on a 3-point attempt. This time, they’d rather die by the foul than Battle’s open 3.
Perhaps, the Raps got a little too gassed up from their success. They had some careless turnovers in the fourth, especially Mamu’s hit-ahead pass attempt to Walter with only a six-point lead.
But IQ’s deflection off a BLOB play resulted in Scottie’s lay-up to make it an eight-point game. The Raps then swarmed Mobley down low, forced a missed lay-up, which allowed an easy one on the other end to make it a 10-point game.
Mitchell, who had a quiet night, gave the Raps a brief scare scoring two 3s to inch within four points.
Though the side-step 3 by BI wasn’t ideal, in my humble opinion, it went in. Neither was his atrocious 3-point attempt later. But, Shead drew a 3-point shooting foul and the 7-0 run was enough to close out a convincing win.
The Raps are now a perfect 3-0 against the Cavs, whose once-prosperous position in the East is showing a little more than rust.
