Real basketball, let’s go! The theory is dead, the reality is here! The theory of the Nuggets being a potential offensive juggernaut? Very real as they used Nikola Jokic as a genius battering ram and conduit to connect to 3-point marksmen. Not to mention the Raptors high level of pressure — which they promised would be there — allowed more liberated steps to the paint for the Nuggets. They were shredding the Raptors. It wasn’t the same situation on the other side, though.
The Raptors were still very much stuck in the theory of everything. Jakob Poeltl wasn’t available to play (stiff back) and so there wasn’t much in the way of penetration from anyone not named RJ Barrett, who continued to rumble downhill. Hit ahead passes will be a huge feature of this offense going forward as they attempt to sneak into transition more often and create early seals for their big wings. They were stuck in mud, for the most part. Ingram looked smooth, and like a professional scorer, but he didn’t commandeer the offense and make it his own, or successful. It took the bench lineup and transitional lineups to get the Raptors back into the game – although the presence of Jonas Valanciunas made the Raptors second unit look incredibly small. Sandro Mamukelashvili cashed a couple triples as the Nuggets stood idly by to see if it was for real. Mixed in all of this was a very short stint for Collin Murray-Boyles where he wrestled with Jokic on one end, and blew by him for a layup on the other – before tweaking his ankle and leaving the game. Although, he did return.
It’s not like this team has a lot of quit. They work hard. They climb back into things often, and they did in this one, too. The Nuggets hit a wall on offense, as the Raptors scrapped with them across the full length of the floor, and when they got steals they ran out. When the offense slowed down for them, Barrett was typically able to mine an advantage or two. Ingram was peppering in some professional scorers, scoring – along with a creeping, sneaky baseline cut for a dunk off a Barrett drive. ‘Mamu’ shook loose against a passive Jokic for two straight layups. The Raptors were throwing their weight back into it. Funky little thing as well? Ingram was cutting.
Just because the Raptors found some success doesn’t mean they could grab control of the game, though. Jokic was still standing on the other side of the court, and flanked by the likes of Cam Johnson and Jamal Murray as shot makers. The Raptors got back into the game, but the Nuggets had their burst before the half was over. They were demolishing the Raptors in just about every facet, except for turnovers – which is the Raptors goal, at least in part. Down by 8 at the half.
It wasn’t a friendly start to the second half for the Raptors as they still struggled to contain the combination of Jokic + shot makers, and on the other side, for all of his defensive impact, Scottie Barnes had no sweet clue how to implement himself on offense. Clunky dribbles, clunky shots, clunky process for everything that wasn’t a pass in transition. He was 0/6 with 1 point. With that kind of performance, and how much of the ball he commands, you’re going to see your offense get tanked.
The Raptors worked their way back — at least some of the way — by putting out a lineup that could support Ingram with screening on one side, and could defend like hell on the other. They asked their star to worm his way to buckets and to points and he did – with gusto and sticktuitiveness. They linked together that lineup with their bench squad to piece together an 11-0 run (capped off by yet another Mamu triple) and found themselves back within 2.
It was two benches against each other battling for supremacy to finish the 3rd quarter, and the Raptors lost a little bit of ground. The Nuggets weren’t altogether composed, but they found themselves finishing at the end of some clunky plays, where as the Raptors didn’t have the same polish. Although, CMB had a very slick finish at the bucket:
12 minutes to go. Down 6.
The Raptors burst on the scene to tie the game up. A spain pick n’ roll that the Raptors had been trying to sequence all night finally landed. Shead hit the and-1, and when he missed the free throw Dick came flying in from the perimeter to almost dunk it home, but drew free throws anyway. Mamu punched a breakaway dunk. Bob’s your uncle, Becky’s your aunt. Game time.
It’s worth mentioning — because there was a lot of Gradey in a short amount of time at the front end of the fourth quarter — that he struggled. It’s true that the Raptors ask him to take far more difficult threes than anyone else on the roster, and he definitely has more pop off the dribble (especially attacking closeouts) than any other guard/wing on the roster who isn’t handsomely paid. So, it’s always somewhat understandable if he struggles on offense because it’s a tough job, but he’s giving up a lot defensively – so he has to justify it with better performances on offense. He didn’t hit his shots, had two offensive fouls, and had I think 3 fairly disappointing defensive possessions that led directly to points that I’m not sure would occur with someone else in his place. Of course, Barnes also had 1 point, it’s the first game of preseason, read into things as lightly or heavily as you’d like. Truthfully, the only guys who hit their jumpers tonight were Barrett and Mamu from the outside, and Ingram around the mid-range.
With that aside, both teams let the end of bench guys bash around to close the game, and the Nuggets depth won out. A sidestepping Alijah Martin finishing at the bucket with his inside hand and a stampede cut from AJ Lawson netted the Raptors a couple buckets, but the water turned off afterwards. Kessler Edwards has a particularly dominant stretch that included two blocks, and the Nuggets cashed a few triples to land the final blow and walk away with the win.
A sneak peek, and an informative one. We saw the clunk of the starting lineup, with only the poise and competence of Ingram and Barrett really shining through. We saw basically every bench guard struggle, although Shead had some nice pacing on ball at times and Ochai Agbaji was of course a consummate pro. Mamu was dynamite.
We go again. We’ve gotta see more, and guys gotta play better.
Have a blessed day.
