John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
Raptors Put on a Show for Toronto in Final Home Game of the Season to Clinch Victory
A season ago, a night like Friday seemed unthinkable.
The Toronto Raptors were amid the so-called 'Tampa Tank,' locked south of the border over 2,000 kilometers away from home, and away from Raptors faithful. There was no atmosphere in Tampa, no "Let's Go Raptors," no noisemakers behind the basket, and certainly no "Refs You Suck!" It was the lost year. The forgotten year.
A year later, the Raptors played their 41st and final home game at Scotiabank Arena this season, putting on a show for the sellout 19,800 fans. It might not have started pretty, but as the Raptors always do, they hung around and hung around before eventually breaking through. With the arena on their feet and the clock winding down, Gary Trent Jr. weaved his way through the Houston Rockets' defense and nailed the game-winning layup as Toronto snuck out with a 117-115 victory over Houston in the penultimate game of the season.
"It's great to hear Scotia rocking, the house rocking," Trent said. "I can't wait to see what's talked about next week."
Siakam Continues to Pile on All-NBA Campaign
It may have been another pretty meaningless night for the Raptors, but don't tell that to Pascal Siakam who appears to be on a mission to get an All-NBA spot. He was adamant he wanted to play Friday night on the second night of a back-to-back and Raptors coach Nick Nurse wasn't going to stop him.
Siakam was quite literally overpowering the Rockets. He got downhill with ease against Houston's non-existent interior defense.
When the Rockets eventually began sending more pressure his way, his passing proved pivotal for Toronto. He found Scottie Barnes for back-to-back dunks as the Raptors jumped ahead late in the fourth, finishing the night with 29 points, 12 rebounds, and seven assists.
Young's Playmaking Leads Raptors' Comeback
It was a bit of an awkward start to the night for Thad Young who was tabbed with thanking the fans during pre-game festivities. Let's just say, there weren't very many fans in their seats at that point and the applause was minimal at best.
After that, though, things turned around in a hurry for the 33-year-old who has really come a long way in the second half of the season with Toronto. He's strung together a handful of impressive games lately and Friday was no different. His impact off the bench helped the Raptors claw out of an embarrassing 20-point first-half deficit thanks to some spectacular passing.
"I think the biggest thing he gives us is first the leadership and stuff in the locker room but he also gives us some multi-dimensional defender," Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. "The versatility that he brings us with that experience and I think probably could play a factor (in the playoffs)."
In the fourth quarter, he stripped Josh Christopher and took it himself for an end-to-end layup finish as the Raptors pulled within four late, nailed a putback layup to put Toronto up three, and then sunk another big-time bucket to put the Raptors up four.
For Toronto, Young's playmaking is crucial. Things can get pretty tight in the paint for the Raptors on offense without very many three-point shooters on the roster and it takes that kind of keen heads-up passing to create buckets in the halfcourt.
"Those really close post-to-post passes aren’t easy to make because there is a lot of bodies usually down there, hands and things moving so he is a very good playmaker, though," Nurse said. "I thought he made some good decisions and did look off to get himself a couple shots as well. I think his passing set up his offence tonight."
The more Young gets accustomed to where his teammates like the ball, the better for this season and possibly next.
Highlight of the Night
Scottie Barnes absolutely electrified the arena with a ferocious one-handed slam on a transition feed from Pascal Siakam as Toronto inched closer to a comeback midway through the fourth.
Gary Trent Jr. then followed it up with a highlight-reel slam of his own before nailing a go-ahead three-pointer with five minutes to go.
Trent finished the night with 26 points including nine in the fourth quarter.
Injury Report
Fred VanVleet should be ready to go for Sunday, Nurse said. The jury is still out on OG Anunoby though the plan is to have him back for the finale.
Up Next: New York Knicks
The Raptors will conclude the season on Sunday with a trip to New York to take on the Knicks at 7 p.m. ET.
