The Toronto Raptors start their five game Eastern Conference road trip tonight against the Cleveland Cavaliers. But will be without starter DeMarre Carroll, who sits due to injury.
After last night’s 113-115 loss to the Chicago Bulls, the Raptors enter the second night of a back-to-back with another matchup against an Eastern Conference heavyweight. The last time the Raptors played the Cavaliers on Nov. 25, they won by a score of 103-99. Even though the win was impressive, they played a Cavs roster that was without Kyrie Irving, Timofey Mozgov, Matthew Dellavedova and Iman Shumpert.
With the current Cavaliers in full strength, the Raptors will have to put up a stronger effort to get back to their winning ways, when they look to improve their 21-14 record at 7:00 p.m in the Quicken Loans Arena.
Cage’s Keys to the Game
Let LeBron Shoot the Basketball
LeBron James’ biggest weakness has always been shooting the basketball, and this season has been no different. Despite his inability to drain buckets from a distance, LeBron still sits fourth in the NBA in points per game (25.8) and sixth in efficiency rating.
The King knows his advantages, and that’s getting to the bucket. Of the 593 shots he’s taken this season, 286 of them have been from 5-feet from the bucket, which he’s been converting at a 66 per cent clip from the field.
Of course the Raptors will never be able to stop the locomotive from coming their way, but they can at least force a delay by fouling. King James has been shooting 72 per cent from the free-throw line this season, a big weakness in his game that’s also translated to his team’s overall execution. The Cavs are the fifth worst free-throw shooting team in the league with a 71.9 percentage, giving the Raptors the opportunity to make this game a bit rough, if need be.
Utilize the Bigs
The last time the Raptors played the Cavaliers it was without starting centre, Jonas Valanciunas. They were able to rely on a huge performance from Bismack Biyombo, who ended up with 11 points and 12 rebounds. As well as six clutch points in the final 2:29 minutes of the game.
But with JV’s return to the starting line-up in the past three games, it’s unlikely that we’ll see both centres playing side-by-side. The reason being: Kevin Love is a weapon that the Raptors need to control.
The last time the Raptors played the Cavs, Love went 5-8 from 3-point range to give him 21 points, to go along with his 13 rebounds. For his career, Love has also been great against the Raptors, averaging 18.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, while shooting 44 per cent from 3.
Both JV and Biyombo are horrible at contesting outside shots, the former allowing a 7.3 increase in his opponent’s field goal percentage from 3, and the latter a 15.5 increase. Luis Scola isn’t great either, allowing his opponents to shoot 10.2 per cent better than their usual from downtown.
The aforementioned Raptors bigs should have their hands full with collecting boards, in what should be a wrestling match down-low against Timofey Mosgov, Tristan Thompson, and Anderson Varajeo.
Leaving Patrick Patterson to be the man for the job. Patterson has been in an offensive slump, only scoring in double-digits twice in the past 10 games, but his young athletic body should be up for the defensive challenge. From 3-point range, he’s been holding defenders to a 4.8 lower field goal percentage than their average, and from within 6-feet from the basket he’s holding defenders to a 5.8 per cent lower clip.
Specific Roles for DeRozan and Lowry
The backcourt matchup should be in Toronto’s favor, with Cleveland’s guard rotation still gaining continuity as they fully recover from injury. Kyrie Irving and J.R. Smith will start the game, with Matthew Dellavedova and Iman Shumpert coming of the bench.
DeRozan should be looking to make a statement against the Cavaliers, one along the same lines that Jimmy Butler hung on him when he had a 42-point showcase the night before. Considering DeRozan’s last 20 games, where he’s scored over 20 points on 16 different occasions, it’s about time that he goes off a scoring rampage that Raptors fans will never forget.
By DeRozan producing as the main scoring option, it allows Kyle Lowry to become the distributer the Raptors will definitely need against the NBA’s third best defence. Lowry as the main scoring option has its problems against the Cavs, only averaging 12.3 points a game, on 36.1 per cent shooting from the field, and 23.1 per cent from deep against them for his career. The last time they played, he did score 27 points, but that was without Irving or Dellavedova in the game.
His assists on the other hand have been great, dissing out 6.5 dimes a game against the Cavs. Lowry’s passing this year has been excellent in general, handing out double-digit assists in both games since the start of 2016. By Lowry running the floor and looking for open teammates, the Raptors will have a better chance of making Irving work on the defensive-end of the floor. By Lowry also distributing to wing players, James won’t be allowed to switch onto the 6-foot point guard to end games, like in the past
X-Factor: James Johnson
In order to be the best, you have to beat the best.
Which is the exact reason the Toronto Raptors acquired DeMarre Caroll this past free-agency. Unfortunately for the Raptors, DeMarre Carroll will sit out the game against the Cavs due to a swollen right knee.
Carroll has been dealing with multiple injuries, which forced him to miss seven games during the month of December. Ever since coming back on Dec. 26, Carroll has yet to post a 30-minute performance.
With Carroll out tonight, Toronto will enjoy another James Johnson appearance. Johnson didn’t get any minutes last night, something that will remain a mystery like most things surrounding Dwane Casey’s relationship with him.
But those that love Toronto basketball, love to watch Johnson play. With his defensive intensity, thick 6-foot-8 frame, and a tough mental motor to be able to step up to the challenge, Casey will have to rely on Johnson to take down the King.
All stats for this article are from BasketballReference.com and NBA.com
You can follow Bryan Meler on Twitter @BryanMelo97
