Demar Derozan

Game in Tweets: Raptors vs. Cavaliers 09/12/14

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The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Toronto Raptors 105-101 for their eight straight win. They have not lost since the Raptors beat them 110-93 at the Quicken Loans Arena on November 22nd. Cleveland is fourth in the conference and are leading the Central divison with a record of 13-7 while Toronto is still first in the East with a record of 16-6. However the Raptors are only 6-4 in their last ten games and more importantly 3-3 since DeMar DeRozan got injured.

Raptors’ head coach Dwane Casey made a last minute adjustment to the starting lineup. Greivis Vasquez who had started every game since the injury to DeRozan returned to his reserve role and little used Landry Fields was inserted into the lineup. Fields matched up against LeBron James at small forward and Terrence Ross started at shooting guard.

Fields made the most of the opportunity and had a solid performance against the best player on the planet. He defended James well and also contributed on the offensive end of the floor. He recorded 4 points on a perfect 2-of-2 shooting with 2 assists, 2 steals and one rebound in 23 minutes of action.

 

Once again Toronto made an effort to give Jonas Valanciunas the ball in the post. Like the game against the Denver Nuggets the night before, the Raptors tried to get him going in the first quarter. He recorded his second straight double-double and finished with 18 points on 6-of-7 shooting and 15 rebounds.

 

The Raptors started the game off strong and looked motivated early in the game. When the bench entered the game in the second quarter they helped Toronto take a double digit lead. The bench was led by James Johnson who recorded 12 points, 4 rebounds, one steal and one block in 21 minutes of playing time.

 

The Cavaliers also got a spark off their bench from third-year player Dion Waiters. He caused problems for the Raptors defensively and was able to score at will in the second quarter. Waiters finished the game with 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting in 21 minutes.

 

Despite Waiters’ best efforts the Raptors were ahead eight points by a 63-55 margin at halftime. The third quarter was extremely close, but the Cavaliers won the quarter with a slight 26-25 advantage. The Raptors entered the fourth quarter with a seven point lead against James and the Cavaliers.

Toronto’s starting point guard was trying to lead his team to a road victory against a star-powered Cleveland team without DeRozan. With NBA All-Star voting starting on December 11th there were many fans campaigning for Lowry to make this year’s team after being snubbed last season. Lowry recorded his sixth double-double of the season with 16 points and 14 rebounds in the Raptors’ loss.

 

LeBron James led the Cavaliers comeback with 35 points on 12-of-21 shooting. The Cavaliers went on a 12-2 run in the fourth quarter which was capped off by a Kevin Love three which tied the game at 97-97.

 

Despite the fact that the Raptors won the battle on the boards by a 35-31 margin, they struggled rebounding the ball in the fourth quarter. There were a pair of key possessions at the end of the game when they gave up three offensive rebounds and two offensive rebounds in two different defensive series.

 

Then with only 48.1 seconds left in the game, James made the Raptors pay for their inability to grab a defensive rebound. The ball was swung out to a wide open LeBron James who knocked down a three that gave the Cavaliers a 102-99 lead.

 

Ultimately it was a fairly disappointing loss considering the Raptors were in control for most the game and then just crumbled at the end. However it is better to look at the positives from this game opposed to focus on the negatives.

Firstly the Raptors led most of the game and nearly won on the road without their all-star shooting guard DeRozan against a Cavaliers team that were early championship favourites entering this season.

Secondly this will be a valuable learning experience for a young team looking to grow into a legitimate contender. It will serve as motivation and show them what is required if they hope to take that next step towards being an elite team.

Finally the result is undoubtedly disappointing, but it shows the organization and its fans that this team, even without DeRozan, is able to compete with one of the best teams in the conference.

Up next the Raptors face the Indiana Pacers at home on Friday night. They are 7-14 so far this year and it is a very different Pacers team than the past couple year. They are missing both Paul George and George Hill due to injury while Lance Stephenson left the team in the off-season signing with the Charlotte Hornets. The Raptors will need to take advantage of a shorthanded Pacers team in order to get back on track.

Game in Tweets: Raptors vs. Jazz 03/12/14

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The Toronto Raptors completed the sweep of the season series against the Utah Jazz with a 123-104 win in Salt Lake City. They finished 2-1 on their mini three game west coast road trip without their all-Star shooting guard DeMar DeRozan. It was also their second game of a back-to-back after defeating the Sacramento Kings the night before.

The Raptors played well in the first quarter although there was a scary moment when Tyler Hansbrough was undercut by Jazz big man Rudy Gobert.

 

 

Greivis Vasquez scored early and often against the Jazz. He continues to play extremely well in DeRozan’s absence. He was the first Raptors player to reach double digits and finished with 17 points, 5 assists and 4 rebounds.

 

 

In the second quarter the Raptors started to pull away as we got a highlight play from Jonas Valanciunas. James Johnson drove the lane and fed the Lithuanian big man for the finish. Valanciunas had another solid yet underwhelming performance with 9 points, 6 rebounds and one block in 33 minutes of action.

 

 

The Raptors’ offence was firing on all cylinders in the first half of the game. Even without their leading scorer Derozan, they had a sixteen point lead and dropped 69 points on the Jazz at halftime.

 

A big factor was the Raptors ability to hit from long range. At halftime the Raptors were 8-of-11 from downtown for a blistering 72.7%.

 

Kyle Lowry led the way for he Raptors with his best game of the season. He scored a career high 39 points and shot the ball extremely efficiently. Lowry made 13-of-22 shots from the field, 4-of-5 from three and a perfect 9-of-9 from the free throw line. He has increased his production since DeRozan’s injury and is averaging 31.6 points and 8.6 assists while shooting 46.4% from the field and 37.5% from three over the last three games.

 

Lou Williams returned to form after a relatively off game for him the night before against the Kings. He drained a buzzer beater and made the off balance jumpers Raptors’ fans have come to expect on way to 17 points off the bench. The Raptors are now 12 -2 when Williams records double digits.

 

 

Terrence Ross continued to play well with DeRozan out of the lineup. He is averaging 17 points per game on 57.1% shooting from the field and 50% from downtown in 33 minutes of playing. These numbers are significantly higher than the 11.7 points per game, 46.3% shooting overall, 43.5% from three and 27.1 minutes per game he is averaging so far this season.

 

 

Patrick Patterson had another solid contribtuion off the bench for Raptors. He has now scored double digits in the last four games and last night he had 13 points on 3-of-4 from three and 5-of-6 overall. Patterson also finished the game as a plus 29 while on the floor against the Jazz.

 

The Raptors played extremely well in the second night of the back-to-back. It was a team effort as six players finished with 10+ points in the game — Kyle Lowry(39), Greivis Vasquez(17), Lou Williams (17), Amir Johnson (13), Patrick Patterson  and Terrence Ross(11).

Toronto shot the ball extremely well and made 57% of their shots overall, 57.1% from three and 87.5% from the free throw line. Also every player shot at least 50% or better with the lone exception of Valanciunas who finished 4-of-9 from the floor.

Up next the Raptors play the Cleveland Cavaliers for the second time this season. After beating the Cavaliers 110-93 on November 22nd in Cleveland, the Raptors are hoping to defeat them at the Air Canad Centre on Friday night. The Cavaliers have won four straight since the loss to Toronto and will be looking to avenge the defeat a couple weeks ago.

 

Game in Tweets: Mavericks vs. Raptors 28/11/14

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The Toronto Raptors suffered their second loss at home this season last night against the Dallas Mavericks. The Mavericks held off the Raptors for a 106-102 victory although the game was not as close as the scoreline may suggest. It was a battle between the two best offences in the NBA with the Mavericks and Raptors ranked number one and two respectively.

It is always an interesting matchup with Toronto Raptors’ head coach Dwane Casey facing off against his former mentor Rick Carlisle. Casey was an important part of Carlisle’s coaching staff when the Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals. Casey was responsible for the Mavericks defensive system during their run to the championship and last night was a clash between two of the best coaches in the league.

 

The Raptors got off to a quick start against the Mavericks with a quick 10-0 run to start the game. Terrence Ross led the way with five quick points which included a sweet layup finish from an alley oop pass from Kyle Lowry.

 

Kyle Lowry was a little too aggressive at the beginning of the game and got into early foul trouble. He picked up three quick fouls in the first however it is unclear why coach Casey had left him in the game after he picked up the second one in the quarter. When Lowry returned later in the game he played extremely well and finished with 25 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.

 

It was the second the game where the Raptors’ wore their retro purple jerseys for their 20th Anniversary Nights. In the second quarter the franchise honoured the contributions of Jalen Rose who was in the Air Canada Centre for the celebration.

 

After their quick start, the Raptors started to fall behind in the second quarter. The Mavericks survived the opening run from the Raptors and then took hold of the game. In the second quarter it was Chandler Parsons who gave the Mavericks a double digit lead.

 

The Raptors struggled in the second quarter and it was Amir Johnson who kept them in the game. He was getting easy putbacks and even blocked Dirk Nowitzki. He had one of his best games of the season and finished with 20 points on 9-of-15 shooting and 9 rebounds.

 

After halftime the Raptors’ offence had a lot of problems against the Mavericks’ defence. The offence looked stagnant and they weren’t knocking down any shots.

 

Then things turned from bad to worse for the Raptors when DeMar DeRozan went down with an injury. It was already a rough night for DeRozan who had no points and was 0-for-8 before he left the game with a left groin injury and did not return.

 

Jonas Valanciunas struggled in the first half when guarded by Tyson Chandler, but he played better in the third quarter when facing the Mavericks’ bench bigs. Despite his struggles against the defense of Chandler, he recorded 8 points and 13 rebounds in the game.

The return of Chandler to the Mavericks this off-season has brought back the defensive swagger they had when they won the championship in 2011. He played extremely well on the defensive end and did a good job of shutting down Valanciunas. Chandler recorded a double-double with 11 points, 10 rebounds and also had 4 blocks.

 

In the fourth quarter Dirk Nowitski started things off for the Mavericks with a couple of sweet mid-range jumpers. However he finished the game 6-of-19 from the field for 15 points and as well as 8 rebounds.

 

At one point the Raptors were down by 14 points with a few minutes left in the fourth quarter. They attempted an implausible comeback which just fell short. Mavericks’ shooting guard Monta Ellis was the main reason why the Raptors did not complete the comeback. He finished with a game high 30 points which included a number of clutch free throws down the stretch that sealed the Mavericks win.

 

The Raptors struggled offensively against the Mavericks defence and committed an uncharacteristically high amount of turnovers. The Raptors have been one of the best teams this year only committing 11.6 turnovers per game this year, but last night against the Mavericks they had 17 which resulted in 22 points off the turnovers.

Despite the presence of Chandler in the paint the Raptors still outrebounded the Mavericks. The Raptors did a good job on the glass and won the rebounding battle by a 55-37 margin.

A big difference maker in the game was the Raptors inability to get to the free throw line. They only attempted 16 shots from the charity stripe which was the second lowest total this season for the Raptors.

The Raptors bench played well as usual. Lou Williams led the way with 16 points, Greivis Vasquez continued playing well with 14 points and 6 assists, and Patrick Patterson recorded his first double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Up next for the Raptors they head out west for a three game road trip. The first game is against the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday before they play the Sacramento Kings and Utah Jazz. Depending on the severity of the DeRozan injury, he may have to sit out the game in his hometown of Los Angeles and the entire western road trip.

 

Game in Tweets: Raptors vs. Hawks 26/11/14

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The Toronto Raptors defeated the Atlanta Hawks 126-115 and improved to a franchise best 4-1 record on the road to start the season. It was the sixth win in a row for the Raptors which is something they have not done since 2009. For the Hawks it was only their second home loss so far this year and are now 5-2 at Philips Arena.

The Raptors were focused early in the game although the same could not be said about the staff at Philips Arena. Toronto finished the first with an impressive 34 points despite there being a number of game clock and technical difficulties during the opening quarter.

 

Georgia native Lou Williams made his return to Atlanta after being traded to Toronto during the off-season. The Raptors acquired Lou Williams and prospect Lucas “Bebe” Nogueira in exchange for the expiring contract of John Salmons. This season Williams has revived his career and has played extremely well for the Raptors off the bench. He had 12 points in the first half and finished with 22 points and 3 steals in the homecoming.

 

DeMar DeRozan shot the ball efficiently in the win against the Hawks. He finished 8-of-16 overall, 2-of-3 from downtown and a perfect 9-of-9 from the charity stripe. He recorded a game high 27 points although he committed three uncharacteristic traveling violations in the first half.

 

Terrence Ross had it going on early in the game, but did not produce at all in the second half. He scored all of his 12 points in the first half and he played 22 minutes. He also shot the ball well making 4-of-7 from the field and 2-of-4 from beyond the arc.

 

At the beginning of the second half the Raptors made a conscious effort to feed Jonas Valanciunas. He benefited from a number of pick and roll plays with Kyle Lowry which resulted in some easy baskets. However he only played 24 minutes and finished with a near doube-double of 11 points and 7 rebounds in limited action.

 

Once again Lowry showed that he is the unquestioned leader of this team. Whenever the Raptors need a timely bucket it is Kyle Lowry that takes over. He had a rough night shooting the ball only making 3-of-12 field goal attempts, but he still did a great job running the offence and getting to the free throw line. Despite the shooting difficulties he finished with his third double-double of the season with 14 points and a season high 13 assists.

 

Jeff Teague played a great game for the Hawks and was a tough matchup for Lowry all night. His speed caused the Raptors guards problems all night and he recorded an extremely efficient double-double. He shot 7-of-14 from the field, 2-of-3 from three and 8-of-8 from the freethrow line for 24 points as well as 12 assists in the game.

 

Backup point guard Greivis Vasquez had his best game of the season last night. He had been scrutinized for his play this season and responded with a huge game off the bench. He was en fuego in the fourth and scored the team’s first twelve points of the quarter. He was doing it on both ends as well and even drew a charge on the defensive end. Vasquez had a season high 21 points on an efficient 8-of-12 shooting in only 17 minutes of playing time.

 

One talking point throughout the game against the Hawks was the organ player at Philips Arena.  The Twittersphere had mixed reactions to the game being played with an organ accompaniment.

 

It was one of the Raptors’ best offensive game so far this season. The team finished with a season high 126 points in Atlanta. They shot the ball efficiently and made 51.2% from the floor, 48.3% from downtown and 84.8% from the charity stripe. The Raptors also finished with seven players in double figures which included all five starters — Lowry, DeRozan, Ross, Johnson, Valanciunas — as well Williams and Vasquez with 22 and 21 points respectively.

The Raptors bench outscored the Hawks by a 52-27 margin. For the second time this season, Toronto won the battle on the boards against Atlanta last night by a 36-32 margin.

Up next the Raptors face a tough Western Conference opponent at home on Friday night. The Dallas Mavericks will make their one and only appearance at the Air Canada Centre as they look to continue their winning ways. They are 11-5 this season and have won seven of their last ten games. The Raptors will be rocking the 20th anniversary purple jerseys against the Mavericks before heading on the road for a mini three game west coast trip.

 

Game in Tweets: Suns vs. Raptors 24/11/2014

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The Toronto Raptors held on for a 104-100 win against the Phoenix Suns at the Air Canada Centre last night. Toronto improved to 12-2 this season which has them tied with the Memphis Grizzlies for the best record in the NBA.

The Raptors made an effort to attack the Sun’s thin frontcourt by feeding Jonas Valanciunas in the post. The Lithuanian big man went to work early in the game with 15 points and was a perfect 5-for-5 in the first quarter. He had a great game and finished with a career high 27 points and made 10-of-11 shots from the field. He also recorded 11 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season.

 

Valanciunas’s size caused a lot problems for Phoenix. His physical play in the paint had a lot of the Suns’ big men in foul trouble throughout the game.

 

In the second quarter it was a battle of the benches. The Raptors and Suns have the two of the best second units in the NBA. The two teams have arguably the deepest benches in the league.

Once again it was Lou Williams who led the Raptors’ second unit after being named the Eastern Conference player of the week. He had another great game last night with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the floor.

 

Chuck Hayes continued to get minutes from Raptors’ coach Dwane Casey. He recorded a season high in points and had another solid performance however there is one play he would like to forget.

 

In contrast to Hayes being stuffed by the rim, Terrence Ross finished a highlight play above the rim. He received a pass from Hayes and then elevated over his defender for a nasty reverse dunk.

 

The Raptors had a slight 54-48 lead at halftime and came out strong in the third quarter. They tightened up their defense and forced the Suns to commit nine turnovers and held them to only 38.1% shooting. The Raptors had their best quarter of the game winning it by a 27-18 margin and entered the fourth with a double digit lead.

Kyle Lowry played extremely well in the third and fourth quarters. He ran the Raptors’ offence efficiently and led his team to victory. Lowry finished the game with 14 points, 8 assists, 7 rebounds, 2 steals and one block.

 

The Raptors have been one of the best fourth quarter teams so far this season. Fans have even coined the term #WeTheFourth. However in this game the Phoenix Suns almost completed an unbelievable comeback. The Suns made 10 threes in the quarter to erase a 17 point deficit and even took a one point lead.

 

Suns’ backup point guard Isaiah Thomas was on fire in the fourth. He played a huge role off the bench and recorded 16 points with an impressive 4-of-6 shooting from downtown.

 

Eric Bledsoe also came to life in the final quarter. After Thomas helped reduce the deficit, it was Bledsoe who took over and looked unstoppable. He finished the game with a team high 25 points with 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks.

 

The Raptors had a two point lead with under one minute left in the game when Lowry made a huge defensive play. He poked the ball away from Thomas and then dove for the loose ball which resulted in a critical jumpball between the two smallest players on the floor.

 

Lowry won the crucial jumpball and then DeMar DeRozan made his free throws down the stretch which sealed the win. DeRozan recorded 23 points in the game, but none were as important as the clutch free throws at the end of the game.

 

James Johnson made his return after missing the last three games although he only played four minutes in the game.

Patrick Patterson did not have the most impressive stat line, but he had some important plays down the stretch. In the final minute of the game he played great perimeter defence against Gerald Green which resulted in an offesnive foul call, recovered the loose ball after Lowry won the jumpball and Ross saved it from going out of bounds and finally he made two free throws after being fouled in the paint.

Up next for the Raptors is a road game against the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night. Historically the Raptors do not play well on the road against the Hawks, but they will look for their second win against them this season after defeating them 109-102 in their home opener.

 

Game in Tweets: Raptors vs. Cavaliers 22/11/2014

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The Toronto Raptors made a statement Saturday night with a 110-93 win on the road against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland is still struggling this season with a 5-7 record while the Raptors are first in the conference with an 11-2 record. The teams are headed in opposite directions with the Raptors on a four game winning streak and the Cavaliers on a four game losing streak.

The Cavaliers started the game off strong and looked like they were going to end there current losing streak. They attacked the Raptors early and had a 12-0 lead early on which included some nice assists from LeBron James.

 

In the first quarter it was Anderson Varejao who helped lead the charge for the Cavaliers. He had 8 points and 6 rebounds in the opening quarter which helped Cleveland take an eighteen point lead early in the game.

 

With the starters falling behind early, it was the bench that helped bring the Raptors back in the game.

 

Performance of the night for the Raptors was Lou Williams who scored a career high 36 points off the bench. He had 24 of his 36 points in the first half which he capped off with a buzzer beater three that gave Toronto a 56-54 lead at the break. He was unguardable for most of the game and even crossed up King James.

 

Despite a tough night shooting the ball, Kyle Lowry had another great game for the Raptors. He only shot 5-for-14 in the game however he was 2-of-5 from downtown and 11-for-12 from the free throw line for 23 points. Lowry also did a great job taking care of the rock with 8 assists and no turnovers in the game.

 

DeMar DeRozan had one of his best all around performances of the season so far. He played a great game defensively guarding LeBron James and came to life offensively in the third quarter. He finished with 20 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists.

 

Since returning home, LeBron James is having a tough time in Cleveland so far. The team has struggled and the King has had a number of underwhelming performances this season. He finished the game with a double-double comprised of 15 points and 10 rebounds which is a good performance for most players, but James is expected to lead this team although he only took 12 shots in the game. After the game it was clear that he is frustrated as he called out his teammates saying that this current Cavaliers team is “fragile”.

The Cavaliers lost the game despite good performances from both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love.

Irving finished the game with 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting and also had six assists. Kevin Love played particularly well in the third quarter and finished with a team high 23 points and 7 rebounds in the game.

 

After losing to the Chicago Bulls, the Raptors made a statement against the Cavaliers. Most people expected the Bulls and Cavaliers to battle for the top spot in the conference, but right now it is the Raptors with the top spot in the East and the best record in the NBA. The Raptors may have opened some eyes with their performance last night and asserted themselves into the discussion for the top seed in the conference.

 

There is a lot of talk about the big three in Cleveland, but it was the combination of Lowry, DeRozan and Williams who were most impressive with 79 points in the game.

After falling behind early, it was the fifth time this season that the Raptors have overcome a double digit deficit to win the game.

Despite being outrebounded, shooting a worse percentage from the field and having less assists in the game the Raptors still managed to win by nearly twenty points. The difference maker in the game, asides from the play of Lou Williams, was the Raptors ability to get to the free throw line. They finished the game with 42 attempts from the charity stripe compared to 29 for the Cavaliers.

Toronto also had a lot fans that made the trip to Cleveland to cheer on their team at the Quicken Loans Arena. The fans proudly cheered on the Raptors and late in the fourth quarter their was even a “Let’s Go Raptors” chant that you could hear on the television broadcast.

Up next the Raptors return home for a game against the Phoenix Suns on Monday. Phoenix swept the season series last year winning both games and have won 16 of their last 19 games against Toronto.

 

Game in Tweets: Grizzlies vs. Raptors 19/10/2014

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The Toronto Raptors defeated the Memphis Grizzlies 96-92 at the Air Canada Centre on Wednesday night. The Raptors had a few days off after their win against the Utah Jazz to prepare for a big game against the Western Conference leading Grizzlies. Having lost recently on primetime to the Chicago Bulls, it was important for the Raptors to show they can beat an elite level team in the NBA.

This game had many interesting storylines before the game even started. Their is a close connection between the two franchises since they joined the league together in 1995 when the Grizzlies were in Vancouver. It was also a battle between the top team in the Eastern Conference and the best of the West.

 

The Grizzlies were shorthanded for the game against the Raptors. The team had five players missing the game due to the flu — Tony Allen, Kosta Koufos, Courtney Lee, Jon Leuer and Beno Udrih — and only eight players dressed.

 

Toronto traffic and transit were crippled by heavy snowfall and frigid weather although it didn’t affect the Raptors play early in the game. Many fans in the crowd may have been late due to the winter weather, but the team started off hot with an early 9-0 lead.

 

The Raptors are celebrating their twentieth season in the NBA and unlike previous celebrations, the Raptors decided to honour Vince Carter and his contributions to the team. He helped inspire young kids like Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett and many of the current young Canadian players in the NBA.

 

Vince Carter is certainly not the same player he was during his early years in Toronto, but he can still play. He is now an experienced veteran and serviceable role player as he showed with the Dallas Mavericks the past couple years. He started the game strong with some classic crossovers and jumpers although he finished with only 7 points on 3-11 shooting in the game.

 

It was always going to be a tough night for the Raptors’ frontcourt against the Grizzlies. Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol make up one of the best frontcourts in the league. They are known for strong physical play, great rebounding and wearing down their opponents with their post games.

 

Zach Randolph had a big game against the Raptors. His size caused problems for the Raptors in the post and he bullied Toronto’s frontcourt with 8 offensive rebounds. He was unguardable for majority of the game until Chuck Hayes entered the game in the fourth quarter and slowed down the Grizzlies’ big man. Randolph finished the game with 18 points and 18 rebounds.

 

 

Marc Gasol scored a game high 22 points and made 8-of-16 shots. Like Randolph, he was also a force in the post and grabbed 12 boards in 41 minutes of play. Gasol is a unique player with the ability to play physically in the paint, but also has an impressive amount of finesse in his game which was difficutl for Toronto’s frontcourt to contain.

 

One of the most interesting matchups in the game was the point guard battle between Kyle Lowry and Mike Conley. Lowry was the point guard of the future for the Grizzlies before they drafted Mike Conley in 2007. They are both overlooked in an NBA full of talented point guards and have never been named to an All-Star team. The two players are looking to be recognized this year and have started off the season extremely well.

 

Kyle Lowry has proven to be the Toronto Raptors’ closer at the end of games. With the game tied 92-92, Lowry made an impressive drive to the paint for two and then hit a clutch fade away jumper over Conley for the 96-92 lead. He recorded 18 points on 7-of-16 shooting, with 7 assists, 3 rebounds and 2 steals.

 

Mike Conley had a slightly better stat line than Kyle Lowry, but he did not lead his team to victory like the Raptors’ point guard. Conley had a clutch shot with his off hand which tied the game at 92 although it wasn’t enough. With so many Grizzlies out with the flu, Conley played 43 minutes and recorded 19 points, 10 rebounds with 5 assists.

 

Terrence Ross had a huge fourth quarter and was extremely important in the Raptors’ win. He started off with back-to-back drives to the basket and was draining three balls. He had 14 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter and finished 3-of-6 from downtown.

 

DeMar DeRozan made 10-of-22 shots for a team high 21 points and also had 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. He also showed off some of the skills he worked on during the offseason. He demonstrated his improved handles and a nice left-handed layup in the second quarter.

 

Once again the Raptors got instant offence from Lou Williams off of the bench. When the Raptors were down ten points in the third quarter he helped lead a 9-0 run with a steal, and-one and a couple threes. He finished with 13 points on 4-of-8 from the field and 2-of-4 from beyond the arc.

 

With the Raptors win head coach DwaneCasey now has the second most victories in franchise history.

 

The Raptors were missing James Johnson who did not play in the game. He was on the bench in a suit wearing a boot to protect his injured ankle as he missed the game against his former team last night.

The Grizzlies outrebounded the Raptors 50-35 and had 15 offensive rebounds which prompted to Dwane Casey to give veteran Chuck Hayes some meaningful minutes. Chuck Hayes played extremely well against the Grizzlies down the stretch and used his big body to help contain the Grizzlies powerful frontcourt.

Up next for the Raptors is their final game of the franchise record seven game homestand. They are currently 5-1 with the one loss against the Bulls. The Raptors play the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night and cannot underestimate this Bucks team. Under new head coach Jason Kidd, they are currently 7-5 ahead of the Cleveland Cavaliers for second place in the Central Division. The team looks to end the homestand with another win before they head to Cleveland for the second game of a back-to-back when the play the Cavaliers on Saturday.

 

Dunk of the Week: Nov 12th-Nov 18th

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Only two games to choose from, but there were still a number of highlight reel dunks. They could arguably some of the better dunks of the season so far. Here is a look back at the best dunk from the week and a couple of honourable mentions. Please voice your opinion by commenting below and let us know if you agree with the selection for dunk of the week.

 

Dunk of the Week

Terrence Ross alley oop vs. Utah Jazz

What can you really say about this one? Amazing catch by Terrence Ross on the lob from Kyle Lowry. Ross got so high on this jam it looked like he had to duck so he didn’t hit his head on the backboard.

 

Honourable mentions

James Johnson vs. Chicago Bulls

Amazing no look pass from Greivis Vasquez to setup James Johnson for the jam against his former team. Johnson with great extension and the one-handed tomahawk finish.

 

 

DeMar DeRozan in transition vs. Utah Jazz

This dunk looked similar to the one last week against the Boston Celtics. Lowry led the break in transition and then passed it back to a trailing DeRozan although this time with an emphatic two-handed finish in the lane.

Game in Tweets: Jazz vs. Raptors 15/11/14

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The Toronto Raptors continued their strong play and improved to 4-1 so far on their current seven game homestand. The Raptors defeated the Utah Jazz 111-93 Saturday night and moved into the top spot in the Eastern Conference with an 8-2 record.

A big matchup in the game was between Enes Kanter and Jonas Valanciunas. Kanter was selected third overall by the Jazz and Valanciunas was selected fifth overall by the Raptors in the 2011 NBA Draft.

 

Enes Kanter played well against the Raptors with an impressive post game and some nice shooting range. He finished with 18 points, 5 rebounds and made 6-of-12 shots from the floor.

 

Although it was Valanciunas who won the battle in the post against Kanter. Valanciunas had arguably his best game of the season so far and performance of the night for the Raptors with 17 points, 14 rebounds and 2 blocks. He also played a season-high 34 minutes in the game and saw a significant amount of court time in the fourth quarter.

 

In the first quarter the Raptors were led by strong starts from Valanciunas and DeMar DeRozan. DeRozan had been shooting the ball poorly over the past couple games, but turned things around in the game against the Jazz. He had a game-high 27 points and made 10-of-17 shots from the field.

 

The Utah Jazz played well in the beginning of the game and had a 25-23 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Jazz had the slight edge over the Raptors because of impressive ball movement and passing.

 

In the second quarter it was a battle of the two benches. For the Jazz it was the length of Rudy Gobert and the play of Trevor Booker that gave them a slight lead over Toronto.

 

Patrick Patterson played well in the second quarter for the Raptors before getting into foul trouble. He was driving the ball and did a great job of scoring inside the three point line. Patterson returned to the game in the second half and capped off an excellent performance with 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting in the game.

 

The Raptors were down 49-46 at half and coach Dwane Casey had a new game plan at the beginning of the third quarter. Kyle Lowry posted up the Jazz’s second year point guard Trey Burke and exploited the size difference. Lowry also used his experience and took advantage of a matchup against rookie Dante Exum. He finished the game with 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting with 4 assists and 3 rebounds.

 

Jazz point guard Trey Burke responded to the pressure and played well in the third quarter. He finished the game with 12 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds although he shot a poor 4-of-15 from the field.

 

Near the end of the third there was a highlight play from Terrence Ross. Lowry threw up the alley and Ross made a ridiculous catch to convert the oop.

 

The Raptors started the fourth quarter with a four point advantage and then Lou Williams and James Johnson helped extend the lead. Williams had 13 points off the bench and as usual drew a number of fouls while shooting jumpshots. Johnson played well on the defensive end and had an athletic finish in the lane, but he did leave the game when he rolled his ankle and did not return to action.

 

Then Toronto eliminated any hope of a comeback when Lowry dropped it off to DeRozan with an emphatic dunk in transition.

 

The Utah Jazz played well and came out strong after stealing a victory at the buzzer in New York against the Knicks on Friday night. Although it wasn’t enough as the Raptors got back on track with the win after they lost to the Chicago Bulls on Thursday night.

This season the Raptors are one of the best teams at getting to the free throw line. They are currently second in the league with an average of 31.1 free throw attempts per game, but they uncharacteristically only had two free throw attempts in the first half. They did finish the game with 23 attempts from the charity stripe although it was less than the Jazz who had 30 attempts and it was significantly lower than their season average.

Toronto has the next few days off before they play the Memphis Grizzlies at the Air Canada Centre on Wednesday night. It is the second last game of their current homestand and it will be a difficult matchup against the Grizzlies. Memphis is currently first place in the NBA with a record of 9-1 and will be looking for revenge after the Raptors swept the season series last year.

Games in Tweets: Bulls vs. Raptors 13/11/14

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The Chicago Bulls and Toronto Raptors battled for the top spot in the Eastern Conference Thursday night at the Air Canada Centre. The Bulls defeated the Raptors 100-93 and are still unbeaten on the road this season. After starting the season 4-0, it was the first loss at home for the Raptors.

DeMar DeRozan tried to make an impression early in the game with all of North America tuned in for the primetime TNT broadcast. He had a nice driving dunk in the first quarter, but forced up a lot of bad shots early on. He did pass Andrea Bargnani to become the third overall in points scored in franchise history, but Jimmy Butler’s defence caused him problems all game. He finished the game with only 10 points on 3-of-17 shooting from the field.

 

Jimmy Butler had a great game against the Raptors. He shut down DeRozan with his defence and also had a great a game offensively. He finished with 21 points which included a demoralizing alley oop off of an inbound play in the third quarter, 9 rebounds and 6 assists.

 

Performance of the night for the Raptors came from James Johnson off the bench. The former Bull played extremely well against his old team. At the end of the first quarter he drew a foul on Jimmy Butler from the beyond the arc and was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field in the first half. He finished the game with 16 points, 5 rebounds, 4 steals and 4 blocks in the game.

 

The Raptors’ backup point guard Greivis Vasquez tried to excite the crowd in the second quarter with an attempted dunk in transition.

 

In the second quarter the Bulls’ bench did not play well at all. In Chicago’s first four possessions they turned the ball over twice, were called for an illegal screen and a travelling violation. Led by the stellar play of James Johnson and the poor play of the Bulls’ bench the Raptors were ahead 52-45 at half.

 

In the beginning of the second half Jonas Valanciunas started things off with a huge dunk over Pau Gasol. Valanciunas finished with a decent stat line with 8 points and 8 rebounds on 4-of-8 shooting, but was completely outplayed in his match up in the post against Gasol.

 

Gasol was dominant down low against the Raptors. His length and post moves were too much for the Raptors’ bigs as he finished with a game-high 27 points on 12-of-19 shooting and also recorded 11 rebounds.

 

The Bulls made the necessary halftime adjustments and came out strong in the third quarter. The Bulls’ defence suffocated the Raptors and held them to only 14 points in the quarter. The Bulls’ offence also scored at will for a total of 35 points and carved the Raptors’ defence with repeated dribble drives and hand-offs for easy buckets in the paint.

 

Then things only got worse for the Raptors when Tyler Hansbrough went down hard in the fourth quarter. Hansborugh has played well so far this season providing energy off the bench, but left the game with a lower back contusion. He attempted to block a Joakim Noah shot in the paint after a defensive breakdown, but fouled Noah and fell awkwardly to the floor.

 

The Bulls led by 18 points at one point in the fourth quarter, but the Raptors attempted a comeback. The team went on a 12-1 run which brought them within seven points. Then after a huge block by James Johnson on Gasol, Kyle Lowry dished it to Amir Johnson who finished with a slam dunk in transition that cut the lead to only five points. Unfortunately it was not enough for the Raptors as they were unable to complete the comeback against the Bulls.

 

The matchup everyone was excited to watch in this game was the point guard battle between Derrick Rose and Kyle Lowry. Despite not shooting a great percentage from the field, Derrick Rose put up some good numbers with 20 points, 4 assists and 3 rebounds. Unfortunately he went down with a hamstring injury late in the fourth and did not return to the game. Kyle Lowry also played well in the matchup despite being in foul trouble for most of the game. He scored 20 points on 8-of-19 shooting and 4-of-7 from three with 8 rebounds and 8 assists.

This was the first real test for the Raptors this season and it looked like there was still plenty of work to be done if they want to join that elite tier of teams in the NBA. The Raptors still have an impressive record at 7-2, but they were clearly outmatched by the Chicago Bulls team. The Raptors have two more difficult games coming up in the schedule against the Memphis Grizzlies and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Although next game for Toronto is against the Utah Jazz at home Saturday night as they continue their home stand and look to get back on track.