Raptors uncompromising at TD Garden
By Guillaume Mahot
The big news from the night could have been the victory of the Knicks in DC (100-107) since the New York franchise is an ugly duckling that barely wins, even if things are a little better since David Fizdale was laid off. But no, the real big performance of last night was the one of the champions in title, Toronto, who managed to win in Boston with a comfortable advance on top of that (113-97).
The Raptors were serious as soon as the first quarter was whistled and took it 36-25. Still forced to do without their injured ones (Marc Gasol and 2019 MIP Pascal Siakam), Nick Nurse’s players could, as usual, rely on some substitutes that may cause headaches to the coach when everyone is back: Patrick McCaw, the former Warrior, had 18 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists, while Spanish Congolese center Serge Ibaka, who replaced Gasol in the starting lineup, brought not less than 20 points and 10 rebounds. English Nigerian OG Anunoby had a little night in terms of statistics with merely 4 rebounds and 7 points, but the collective performance of the Raptors is to underline. As a matter of fact, they prevailed on most sectors, which makes their victory logical if you take the rebounds (53 to 31!) and the number of assists (27 to 18 for Toronto).
Point guard Kyle Lowry was decisive with 30 points. After a necessary time to get back to business after his last injury, the one who had to withdraw from the last world cup in China because of a thumb injury is definitely on the road again. After an incredible comeback against Dallas a few days ago and 32 points brought in the basket (and 10 assists) for a win 110-107 while the Raptors had 30 points late in the end of the third quarter, Lowry kept on with this pace and strongly enabled the squad to grab the victory at TD Garden.
Even without Kawhi Leonard, you should not bury the Raptors too fast.
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