Game #5 - Toronto Raptors 103 - Oklahoma City Thunder 98

[Blacklash2k4]

LOL on completely off-topic note, did anyone else see Crowder hit an out of bounds full court shot?

[Abbas]

next 6 games are technically winnable

ORL, MIA, NYK, PHI, NOP and SAC before we run into the Warriors.

How cool would an 11-0 start be?

dont jinx it man lol

[charlesnba23]

Please stop hating on DD like wtf wtf wtf wtf he is not perfect but he is a heck of a player

[Chr1s1anL]

Demar doesnt get to the rim, he pulls up. He cant blow past guys. Step back from him and let him shoot

So simple but, 5 NBA teams now haven't been able to execute that

[KeonClark]

Giannis, Porter, Livingston etc. Right now team play longer guys on DC and SG on Demar theyll switch once they realize DC cant drive and DD cant shoot

Again, who doesn't have a scouting report on DC and DD? You act like everybody is new to this lol

[Wild-ling#1]

What? He's been in the league for years and gotten fouled a lot the last few. Pretty sure teams know what to expect. I've noticed a lot more passes to JV and the open man for 3 this year. He's also taking less long 2s and more "medium" 2s, where he drives, stops and pops, and have so far been a higher success rate and less degree of difficulty.

I'll take it with a grain of salt because I've seen him play smart like this for 5 game stretches, but I'll also give the devil his due.

Yeah, and it wasn't like he wasn't trying to involve others. But no one was hitting anything. But we've seen him dish out to Carroll and so on, with success other nights.

[thead]

Yeah, he was varying his attack tonight. Driving to draw contact and pulling up to draw contact. And hitting some shots. And everyone else was so effing cold ... Sure you can complain about ISO. But when the man does what he did in the 4th, to win a game like this (along with the D, and CoJo, and so on)??

It's just cruel to complain "on principle", as it were.

There is a valid reason to complain though.

When you are coaching you hate to see mistakes or bad shots get rewarded.

Steph Curry technically takes a lot of bad shots and if anyone else started jacking those in the league they would be benched. He has transcended it being a mistake now, and bad shots are good shots for him, even though you would likely never coach a kid to play that way.

DeRozan when rebounding, passing and attacking is an all star caliber guard. He is not yet good enough at the lazy long two for us to shut up about them though. So on nights when he settles it is absolutely fair to criticize until he either stops or transcends our very valid points. He has been playing great since the start of the season though

[DogeLover1234]

Only 12 assists total tonight, yeesh. in the previous 4 games we averaged 20.5

[Chr1s1anL]

it a completely different scheme. one Casey dislikes. his entire reputation as a defensive coach was the overhelping D and Raptors are playing a D with the C protecting the rim and defenders protecting the middle

Really did Casey tell you he didn't like that scheme?

[Wild-ling#1]

it a completely different scheme. one Casey dislikes. his entire reputation as a defensive coach was the overhelping D and Raptors are playing a D with the C protecting the rim and defenders protecting the middle

I'm just not going to argue with this. Not because I must concede its perfect truth and wisdom. But just not now.

[KeonClark]

Only 12 assists total tonight, yeesh. in the previous 4 games we averaged 20.5

Hard to get assists when you're at the line that much, and fast breaking off turnovers that much. It wasn't that kind of game. And we held a healthy OKC to 98 points at home. Things to work on? Sure. But you take this performance every single night if you can.

[GuiJaeger]

To be honest, besides Miami, it's actually Orlando which scares me the most of those teams you cited above. I don't trust the Pelicans. Yeah, Anthony Davis is great, but they REALLY don't have much beyond that. And Sacramento is always a Rondo brickhouse, a Cousins fit, and/or a Gay 3-25 night away from self-sabotaging themselves.

[raptors999]

Again, who doesn't have a scouting report on DC and DD? You act like everybody is new to this lol

Its the first five games. They arent focused on the Raptors so they play them like last years team with DC instead of Ross or more specifically DD and a SF since Ross was benched. Roberson should have taken DC and KD Demar. OKC defense is still working things out. They arent very good on D right now

[thead]

I do sense SOME hate here but do people realize that criticism doesn't mean hate?

If I see a bad shot I call it a bad shot...if I see lazy defense I call it lazy defense...if I think Biyombo being our number 1 option tonight was not paying dividends...well I smash my keyboard and piss off my neighbors.

[MixxAOR]

To be honest, besides Miami, it's actually Orlando which scares me the most of those teams you cited above. I don't trust the Pelicans. Yeah, Anthony Davis is great, but they REALLY don't have much beyond that. And Sacramento is always a Rondo brickhouse, a Cousins fit, and/or a Gay 3-25 night away from self-sabotaging themselves.

anything can happen