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2018-2019 Toronto Raptors Thread: "In Kawhi (& Danny) We Trust!"

Whoa!  Raptors win 118-109    Toronto leads Finals 1 game to 0.

What a night in Toronto.  At last count, there were as many as 21 mini Jurassic Parks not just here but all over the country!  And the Raptors didn?t disappoint in playing an aggressive transitional, points-in-the-paint game coupled with excellent fielding/FGs.  They took the ball out of the hands of the Warriors at close range, prevented some key baskets while maintaining a 10-pt. lead by halftime and keeping up a lead onwards.

Not a heavy offensive night for Kawhi Leonard nor Kyle Lowry, but it was the  little things they did that helped keep the flow.  Leonard had 23 pts., 8 rebds., & 2 stls, while Lowry had 7 pts., but had 9 assists.  It was one of Lowry?s best defensive performances in these playoffs so far.

The real hero of the night was Pascal Siakam who?s 32 points & 82% FG % (14/17), along with his 8 rebds., 1 stl., & 2 blks., set the tone for Toronto.  Marc Gasol, perhaps with one of his best games all-round, had 20 pts., 7 rebds, 2 stls & 1 blk.  Gasol was 6/10 on the FGs.

Danny Green, among the NBA all-time FG playoff leaders, made the most of his 3 pointers as he was 4/9 in that category.  Also, VanVleet with 15 pts,, and a FG% of 62%.  Again, VanVleet, as he had done previously, rose to the occasion.

The Warriors Steph Curry and Klay Thompson were Golden State?s main contributors, 34 & 21 points, respectively.

Of course, there are many out there who aren?t convinced the Warriors will go down easily, or that the Raptors will sweep ?em.  In fact, with the possible return of Kevin Durant for Golden State for Game 2, the Warriors will have that extra arsenal on offence.  But then again, the Raptors will be waiting.

Great team effort!

[tweet]1134318062818062343[/tweet]

Oh Canada!
[tweet]1134305372485722112[/tweet]

D-FENCE!!
[tweet]1134296423166611456[/tweet]

[tweet]1134300130147033093[/tweet]

Well-balanced:
[tweet]1134300980609085440[/tweet]

Sharp:
[tweet]1134283635572531201[/tweet]

Kawhi!
[tweet]1134281418916409344[/tweet]

From a Low-ry to a high:
[tweet]1134318062818062343[/tweet]


Highlights:
https://youtu.be/tbn1oGhLVvQ
 
I wish I was as chill as Kawhi. He's a stone-cold killer, never reacts to anything, so even-keeled all the time, never rattled. Performs equally as great in all situations, immune to momentum or noise. You can really see how having a guy like that around would be such a calming influence. He's amazing. We all need to just calm down and keep focused and don't let the noise get to us.
 
cabber24 said:
I wish I was as chill as Kawhi. He's a stone-cold killer, never reacts to anything, so even-keeled all the time, never rattled. Performs equally as great in all situations, immune to momentum or noise. You can really see how having a guy like that around would be such a calming influence. He's amazing. We all need to just calm down and keep focused and don't let the noise get to us.
Click to expand...

Kadri needs to take some zen lessons from Kawhi.
 
https://twitter.com/MapleLeafs/status/1134291578640576512
Raptors Win!!!! What a 60 minute effort on both sides of the ball against this incredibly dangerous Warriors team.

haha love that Mississauga Jurassic Park ;D
 
Oh, bollocks!    Championship Final tied at 1 game apiece.

Warriors defeat the Raptors 109-104.

For the first half of Game 2 Sunday night, it looked like a repeat of the Raptors victory in Game 1, with Toronto playing a focused, sharp, and uptempo style laying in one layup after another.  Nothing much was going right for the Warriors, not even for Steph Curry who exited the first quarter for some reason (feeling unwell?).  By the time the first half was over, the Raptors had their lead (by five).

Then the floodgates opened as Golden State went on an NBA record of an 18-0 run in that third quarter.  Geez.  And the Raptors?

They couldn?t get points in the paint, and their shooting, well, it was miserable as Toronto fell behind and  ended up trailing the Warriors by ten, right to the end.  The Raptors got close at one point in the dying minute of the fourth quarter, but with the clock counting down the seconds, the Warriors Iguodala?s 3-pointer practically ended it right there.

Sure the score was close, but the facts are that when one plays catchup to one of the best teams in the league, a team that has had the best NBA third quarter comeback record, you don?t win by giving them the run of the court.
You don?t win squandering a series of chances/baskets when the other team stumbles a bit.  Nope.  You don?t.

Golden State?s transition defence & on the half-court was exceptional in that third quarter and even going into the fourth blocking off Toronto?s points-in-the-paint and in keeping the Raptors shooters slightly off balance or hurried.

Once again, as he has demonstrated in these playoffs, Kawhi Leonard emerged as the Raptors best shooter going 16/16 in the free throw category.
He had 34 points, 14 rebds., & 3 assists, but Kawhi couldn?t do it all himself, as the Raptors starters simply failed to cash in in that crucial fourth quarter.

It was the Raptors bench unit that lit it up for them.
VanVleet with 17 pts., 2 assists & 3 stls., Lowry with 13 pts., Norm Powell with 7 pts., 2 assists & 1 stl., and Serge Ibaka with 7 pts., 10 rebds., & 2 stls. plus Siakam who contributed 5 assists.
It was the Raptors bench that gave the team the support it needed.

Even though the Warriors were without Klay Thompson for a part of the fourth, and still missing Kevin Durant, the rest of the team picked up well and continued to make good on their shooting chances. 

Highlights:

Oh Canada! Awesome!
[tweet]1135335604760252416[/tweet]
[tweet]1135384820375146497[/tweet]

Simply...wow, what a sight!
[tweet]1135352361885585414[/tweet]

Welcome, Mr. President!
[tweet]1135368902719037440[/tweet]

Beware the Klaw!
[tweet]1135372297731289088[/tweet]

Steph?s BFF:
[tweet]1135354779541094400[/tweet]

Powell power:
[tweet]1135352786852425729[/tweet]

Congratulation go to Danny Green, among the top in the FG category and #17 on the all-time list:
[tweet]1135369325366394881[/tweet]

Game 3 goes Wednesday in Oakland.

GO RAPTORS!


https://www.nba.com/raptors/video/teams/raptors/2019/06/03/2632813/1559531925067-nba-web-190602-gsw-tor-gm2-highlightsdigital
 
Raps still got it to within 2pts at the end even after that HORRIFIC third quarter. Man, Kawhi is a cyborg on those free-throws: 16 straight drained. Warriors are banged up, still got a shot!
 
Hooray!    Toronto leads Championship Final 2 games to 1.

Raptors thump the Warriors 123-109.

A ?depleted? Warriors squad ?  and by depleted we mean no Klay Thompson, no Kevin Durant, no Kevon Looney ? couldn?t hold court with the Raptors as Toronto not only maintained it?s lead quarter by quarter going into the first and second halves but eventually widened the margin for good.

A little bit of payback for the Warriors third quarter blitzkreig in Game 2, eh?  You bet it was as the Raptors led by Danny Green?s 18 points but more importantly his going 6/10 on the 3 pt., FGs.  Couple that with Lowry?s stats (23 points, 5/9 FGs, and 7 assists) and together these two had a total of 11 FGs.  That is more than the Warriors could muster all night!

Leonard?s 30 pts., 6 assists., 2 stls., & 2 blks., combined with Gasol?s 18 pts., 7 rebds., & 4 assists,  and Siakam?s 18 pts., 9 rebds., 6 assists all proved too much to handle for Golden State.  The Raptors starters were dynamite from the outset.

Not to discount the bench unit of VanVleet who went 3/6 on the FGS and had 11 points, 2 assists & 3 steals, along with Serge Ibaka?s 9 pts., 5 rebds,, & 6 blks.

Golden State?s Steph Curry tried to do everything with his playoff high 47 points and made the most of his chances as Toronto earned several fouls in trying to unseat his ball control.  That may have to change a bit if the Raptors are to contain him better.

Otherwise, great game.  Way to go, Raptors!

Highlights:

A near NBA Finals record:
[tweet]1136490396903567360[/tweet]

Nice and proud!
[tweet]1136483857610395648[/tweet]

Warrior killers:
[tweet]1136455907770900480[/tweet]

Mr. FG:
[tweet]1136467107959328768[/tweet]

Movin? on up:
[tweet]1136445210270097408[/tweet]

Bullseye!
[tweet]1136476996475580416[/tweet]

Kawhi!
[tweet]1136465419055783936[/tweet]

Leave it to Kyle:
[tweet]1136462926489968641[/tweet]

Ibaka...D-fence!
[tweet]1136474570146209793[/tweet]

Spicy smart:
[tweet]1136451468897054722[/tweet]

Game 4 goes Friday in Oakland.

GO RAPTORS!

Highlights:
https://www.nba.com/raptors/video/teams/raptors/2019/06/06/2637271/1559793655064-nba-web-190605-tor-gsw-gm3-highlightsdigital
 
Raps kicked butt! Green showing what he can do! Great game! People are raising the "guys are out" comments but I'd argue there's still enough on that Warriors team to be good. Raptors just took care of business.
 
The fan who shoved Kyle Lowry in last night's game...

[tweet]1136687928514686976[/tweet]

...and the ensuing reaction from the league:

[tweet]1136746230002982912[/tweet]
 
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