Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
Raptors Take a Step Toward Some Consistency With Blowout Victory Over Thunder
The Toronto Raptors are finally handling their business.
It had felt like months since Toronto had pulled off a statement victory prior to Tuesday’s win over the Denver Nuggets. Save for a brief hiccup and a near-collapse, it had been the Raptors’ most impressive and complete game of the season. But competing with good teams on any given night hasn’t necessarily been the issue for this group. Rather, it’s been a lack of consistency that's plagued this team all season.
So how exactly would the Raptors respond from the highs of their last outing?
Well, they did what they had to do. It won’t be a game to write home about, but a 128-111 victory over the lackluster Oklahoma City Thunder is enough to keep Toronto in the hunt for the eighth seed in the conference and prove that maybe, just maybe, there’s some consistently good basketball ahead.
The biggest surprise of the night came just after tipoff when Toronto opted to start with Fred VanVleet on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and O.G. Anunoby on sophomore guard Josh Giddey. It was a shocking and ultimately ill-advised decision from Toronto as Gilgeous-Alexander burned the Raptors for 19 points on 9-for-10 shooting in the first half en route to a 29-point performance.
Anunoby looked stellar on both ends, nailing a pair of second-quarter three-pointers and hooking up with Jakob Poeltl on an alley-oop slam before immediately blocking Jalen Williams and stripping Tre Mann on the ensuing Thunder possessions. He put Toronto up double digits early in the third, nailing his third of three three-pointers, finishing with 17 points, two steals, and two blocks.
It wasn’t until the fourth quarter that Anunoby switched onto Gilgeous-Alexander, face-guarding the Canadian forward and holding him to just six points in the final frame, albeit in limited playing time as both teams eventually pulled its starters late.
While VanVleet brought it on the offensive end with 19 points, his on-ball defense against Gilgeous-Alexander left something to be desired. He did poke a ball loose in the second quarter, using his pesky hands to force a steal for Gary Trent Jr. But those hands have proven to be far more effective when VanVleet is used as the help defender rather in point-of-attack defense against an opposing superstar.
It did help that the Thunder had no answers for VanVleet at the other end as the 29-year-old repeatedly made Oklahoma City pay from three-point range. He nailed a pair of threes in the third, helping to balance out Toronto’s second unit that treaded water in some crucial third-quarter minutes.
Pascal Siakam, meanwhile, got back on track after a disappointing stretch and a pair of 12 points games in his last two outings. He showed his aggressiveness early, with nine points in the first quarter and 16 in the first half. His spin move looked as deadly as ever and a trio of three-pointers allowed led all Raptors with 25 points to go with a game-high 14 rebounds and eight assists.
Christian Koloko got the surprise nod over the struggling Precious Achiuwa off the bench. The rookie center checked in to start the second quarter and immediately provided a defensive lift, blocking and contending a pair of shot attempts from Mann at the rim. He did, however, have to leave the game early after being hit in the face in the third quarter.
The biggest lift from the bench, though, came from Gary Trent Jr. who nailed a pair of three-pointers in the second quarter as Toronto jumped ahead by eight. He wrapped up the night in the fourth, nailing a catch-and-shoot three from Siakam in transition to put the Raptors up 20. His 23 points on 8-for-12 shooting marked just the second time Trent has eclipsed the 20-point mark since early February.
With the victory, Toronto pulls within 0.5 games of the Atlanta Hawks for the eighth seed in the conference and moves 1.5 games ahead of the Washington Wizards for the 10th seed in the East.
Up Next: Minnesota Timberwolves
The Raptors will wrap up this three-game homestand on Saturday night when the team welcomes the Minnesota Timberwolves to town at 7 p.m. ET.
