Post Game Report Card: Raptors squeak by 50% of Thunder

Maybe I’m spoiled because I’m used to watching smooth Raptors offense along with smothering defense. Maybe the Toronto Raptors need some time to find that mid-season groove. Regardless, the Raps did not look good tonight once again as they were adequate for the majority of the game against an Oklahoma City Thunder squad that had as little as 6 players available.

To add insult to injury (literally), Perry Jones III and Reggie Jackson both got banged up mid-game. To put things into perspective, the Raptors were going up against 2, maybe 3 players that deserved to even have a spot in a rotation, while the Raptors pumped out their full rotation. Jonas Valanciunas left mid-way after getting bumped in the face, and Amir Johnson was also out once again, however it really was no comparison. The bottom line is that this game should have been over by halftime, however it wasn’t over until late in the 4th quarter.

The outcome of the game was a 100-88 victory, which puts the Raptors at a cool 3-1. That being said, it took a strong fourth quarter to overpower a depleted Thunder team that literally had no options for their exhausted players. The Raps were clearly cruising for most of the game, however if there is one thing they should have learned from last season, it’s that every game should be tackled with 100% intensity.

Let’s dig into the report card:

Offense: B+ 

The offense hasn’t been bad in terms of scoring output by any means. The Raptors hit the century mark however shot just under 40% from the field. Further, they shot 26% from the three point line. Something encouraging was the 85% free throw shooting after the disaster in Miami.

The Raptors got a solid contribution from the bench. Tyler Hansbrough chipped in 12 points, Lou Williams had 12, Greivis Vasquez had 10, and James Johnson had 8. Your typical scorers were relatively quiet, with DeMar DeRozan contributing 16 and Kyle Lowry putting up a mere 9 points. Patrick Patterson looked pretty solid with 14 points.

My overall take on the offense is that the individual outputs have been solid. The mistakes have been limited, and the shots have been relatively high quality. However, at the start of the season this is going to happen as the scouting reports are relatively fresh, and defenses are relatively weaker. Teams will tighten up their defenses as the season progresses, thus the Raptors will have to get back to doing those things we saw last season.

Defense: C+ 

88 points allowed typically wouldn’t warrant a C+, however the Raptors only really turned up their defense when they needed to. Over 52% shooting and 30 points in the first quarter is unacceptable when you are going against a team that has Serge Ibaka as their first option. Getting off to a slow start defensively isn’t going to bode well when the Raptors take on teams that are full-strength and high caliber.

The Raptors forced 21 turnovers and limited OKC to 36 points in the second half, thus the defensive prowess was evidently there when it was needed.

Rebounding: A- 

Can’t really complain too much about rebounding when the Raps are missing their best rebounder in Amir. They were outrebounded 41-39, however did well enough that it wasn’t detrimental. Patterson led the way with 8.

Game Ball: Patrick Patterson

2Pat said he was going to ‘fix this’, and he did. Patterson had a solid overall game with 14 points and 8 rebounds, and we will have to hope he carries this forward as the Raps head to Boston with Amir & JV’s status unknown. Overall, let’s hope for a more convincing performance tomorrow night.