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The Toronto Raptors have never won a best of seven series. Their only other playoff series victory was against the New York Knicks in a best of five back in 2001. The Raptors won that series by a 3-2 margin. A win tonight will vanquish the Brooklyn Nets and send the Raptors to South Florida. Raptors up 3-2. Game six in Brooklyn. Nothing else preceding this moment matters. The Raptors have two opportunities to close out the most expensive team in the NBA; this is their first. Prepare to see these teams exchange blows in Bucktown.
Cage’s Keys to the Game
Contain Joe Johnson
Joe Johnson scored 26 of his 30 points in the second half when the Nets made their ferocious near-comeback. 18 of those came in the third quarter, which kept the Nets afloat and allowed them to make a push when the rest of their team came alive in the fourth quarter. He victimized the Raptors in every conceivable way: floaters, three point shots, post-ups; he was completely unguardable in that second half. For the series, the Nets have a plus 9 net rating when Johnson plays. When he doesn’t, they have a negative 34.5 net rating in this series. There have only been two strategies to stop Johnson that have had any kind of success: constantly doubling him like they did in game four, and having Landry Fields defend him. Both strategies should be utilized liberally in game six. Fields is the only player with the combination of size and quickness that’s needed to keep Johnson in check. He and anyone else who defends him needs to be physical with Johnson both on and off the ball. The Raptors need to prevent Johnson from catching the ball and attacking the Raptors in the middle of the floor as he did with great success in game five. The success of defending Johnson will determine whether we’ll be watching the Raptors in Miami or Toronto come Sunday.
Attack the Block
The Talib Kweli plug aside, Jonas Valanciunas needs to see more of the ball. Granted, this more of a perimeter-based attack. DeMar DeRozan is an all-star and Kyle Lowry is the lifeblood of this team, game 5 being a case in point. However, Valanciunas has proven to be a valuable offensive threat against the Brooklyn bigs with an array of moves. His running hook in the middle of the key is a thing to marvel, and his jump shot, either off a catch or a move off of the block, has been effective. Kevin Garnett has looked largely overmatched, and Mason Plumlee isn’t a much better solution. Valanciunas has averaged 12.8 points per game and 10.8 rebounds per game in 29.5 minutes per game in the playoffs. He’s fourth in the playoffs in rebounding, and recorded a double-double in his first three playoff games. The Raptors need to attack the block more frequently this game, especially when the perimeter game stagnates into a steady stream of long twos. The Raptors have a big advantage, and they need to do a better job of exploiting it.
Keep Trusting Your Youth
This is one of the biggest games in franchise history. A chance to advance to the second round for only the second time in team history. A chance to win a best of seven series for the first time in team history. A chance to defeat the most expensive team in league history and showcase your abilities in front of a national audience against the big three of Miami. So much is on the line. Dwane Casey has done a good job of not abandoning his sophomore players in Valanciunas and Terrence Ross, and that shouldn’t change this game. Ross has been a complete non-factor for the most part of this series. Yet he continues to start. This is the right move. In game five, it seemed to be finally paying off. It wasn’t even an adequate night for Ross, yet his eight points and two threes was a huge step up for the young wing player in these playoffs. His teammates did a great job of swinging the ball and looking for him to try to get him going. What Lowry said in his post-game interview Wednesday is right: the Raptors need Ross. Hopefully he’ll start to show some more confidence tonight and have an even bigger impact on the game. Valanciunas has been huge for the Raptors on the glass and on the offensive end. So it was weird seeing the sophomore center sit for so long in the fourth quarter during the Raptors collapse. Granted, Valanciunas does still have his struggles on the defensive end, and Chuck Hayes, a.k.a. Old Man Strength, has been solid in limited minutes. However, the Raptors need Valancinas out there for more than the 24 and a half minutes he played in game five.
X-Factor: Kyle Lowry
The team’s lifeblood. Lowry is averaging 21.8 points, 5.2 assists, and 4.4 rebounds per game. He has a plus/minus rating of 3.6, including a plus 8.5 rating in two games against Brooklyn. He’s the only starter with a net positive rating. Take from that what you will, but it’s no secret that if Lowry is playing like a rabies infected bulldog, the Raptors will more than likely win. A big game from Lowry means history for the Raptors. Game six. Time to close it out.
