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  • Game #66: Raptors @ Heat 8pm SN1 (TONIGHT)

    Raptors fly down to MIAMI FLO RIDA to take on the steaming hot Miami Heat in the last game of their 5 game road trip.



    VS.




    --

    Stats for the game
    Raptors are 5-3 since the All-Star break.
    Raptors are top 10 in defense since
    4th in Opponent FG% and 12th in 3p%
    2nd best in Opponent points allowed in the paint

    Miami has only lost 4 games since January 17.
    2nd in the league in Net rating in that time frame
    3rd best defense
    5th in 3 point makes per game, #1 in 3 point efficiency

    --

    KEY MATCHUPS
    Goran Dragic vs Cory Joseph
    Dragic has returned to All-NBA form averaging 22 points and 6 assists with a 52.2 FG% and an obscene 45.3% from deep during the Heat's run. He has perfected the inside-out game during the Heat's stretch of great basketball. Since the ASB, CoJo has averaged 12 points, 5 assists, a little over a turnover and has played good defense in most games. Can the cool kid from Pickering channel his inner Gary Payton again and shut down the Slovenian dragon?

    Dion Waiters vs DeMar DeRozan
    As the two most frequent shooters on their respective teams, this will end up as a battle of buckets that should be one for the ages. Dion "what the hell are you doing" Waiters has turned his career around under the tutelage of Erick Spoelstra. In their 20-4 stretch, he has shot a ridiculous 44.9% from three with 19 points a game; the Heat have only lost 1 game during this frame when he scores 20 or more. DeRozan will get his points no problem. The question is whether he can keep Dion relatively in check.

    Hassan Whiteside vs Jonas Valanciunas
    I wouldn't be surprised if Hassan doesn't want to play today. He must still have PTSD from getting dominated in the playoffs on national television by the Lithuanian giant. Tonight, Jonas needs to keep him off the glass and try his best to prevent lobs from getting to him in the paint. On the other end, he'll need to be assertive and attempt to get Whiteside into foul trouble.

    Guys To Look Out For
    James Johnson
    He's having a career year. He might do some stuff this game

    Wayne Ellington
    The sharpshooter from UNC is another guy having himself a career year. He's made a three in every game since February and is averaging close to 3 threes made per game since mid-January. If he gets any sort of room, he'll make it rain. (If only the Raps had a player like this eh?). PLAY TIGHT. DO NOT LEAVE HIM OPEN FFS.



    Lets Go RAPTORS

    Comment


    • Ugh... Game day in MIAMI... Against miraculous Miami Heat team. Vegas say we're fucked. 5 points underdogs

      Comment


      • big boi wrote: View Post
        d) a solid game plan from the head coach? One that adapts to the players and squad depth he has available to him? One where Demar isn't being fed in to the teeth of the opposing defence in crunch time which the opposing coach surely must have prepared his team for given Casey shows a consistent unwillingness or inability to try anything else?
        Yeah, I mean, I thought JV should have played at the end, the offence got too bogged down without another option. I guess I'm just getting used to Casey, and he did so many things right that he usually does wrong in this one that I felt generous.
        twitter.com/dhackett1565

        Comment


        • GLF wrote: View Post
          You are definitely right that our bad shooting is pretty much why we lost the game but it seems like this shooting isn't going to improve anytime soon. We've been shooting badly for some time now and we literally have no consistent shooters out there except for maybe Ibaka. That's not enough. What, are we just going to continue to lose every time we shoot it badly? Because if that's the case we might lose every game we play for the rest of the season lol. We have to find a way to win even when our shot isn't falling because it's seems we are going to continue to miss open look after open look.
          Such is life without Lowry. We've been finding ways to win at a greater rate than I expected, and I wouldn't be shocked if they kept doing so. It's just a shame not enough clicked in this one - it's not like the team didn't fight or anything. They missed good shots, shots you have to take. I see no reason to expect them to keep missing open shots. Inconsistent does not mean bad - it just means some nights the shots won't fall - some nights, not most or all.
          twitter.com/dhackett1565

          Comment


          • rocwell wrote: View Post
            Ugh... Game day in MIAMI... Against miraculous Miami Heat team. Vegas say we're fucked. 5 points underdogs
            I think we win this one. Handily. I say JV beasts inside, MIA has nothing to stop DD with, and role players hit shots. Miami's luck runs out.

            All of that against all logic, but I'm going with it.
            twitter.com/dhackett1565

            Comment


            • GLF wrote: View Post
              You are definitely right that our bad shooting is pretty much why we lost the game but it seems like this shooting isn't going to improve anytime soon. We've been shooting badly for some time now and we literally have no consistent shooters out there except for maybe Ibaka. That's not enough. What, are we just going to continue to lose every time we shoot it badly? Because if that's the case we might lose every game we play for the rest of the season lol. We have to find a way to win even when our shot isn't falling because it's seems we are going to continue to miss open look after open look.
              Our offense isn't designed for shooting, it's designed for shot-creating slashers, with simple, safe motions to open up tiny seams for driving. Not too much post-up action or not many cuts. Our shooters are reading and reacting off Kyle and DeMar and trying to predict how the possession will end. In a ball movement offense, it's more predictable. Role players are called role players for a reason: they need to be propped up with systems and predictability to make up the talent gap between them and say, Steph Curry.

              With Kyle out, DeMar is getting blitzed hard and now instead of the the team knowing that they ball has to get back into Kyle's hands quickly, it is now in somebody else's hand to create/pass. So far, Demar seems to be prioritizing Ibaka as the first outlet, but we don't have Kyle as that second shot creator or decision maker. The role players don't have that second guy to read and react off and they have been programmed to pass it back to Kyle or DeMar and now they have to be that creator/decision maker. So, I think everybody's trying to figure it all out on the fly. Even wide open 3's probably feel hurried and uncomfortable at NBA game speed.

              Our offense puts so much pressure on guards to create off the dribble. Cory has improved from abominal to serviceable, but he's no Kyle and he can't save possessions with a deep 3. Norm is struggling as a 1st option creator because his handle isn't tight yet, and he's very inexperienced as a decision maker. Delon has nice handles, but no shot, and he's still getting his rookie reps in. The silver lining here, is that it seems to be gradually forcing more ball movement out of sheer necessity and survival, as well as having to play hard defense for 48 minutes to have a shot at winning games. This will pay off big in the playoffs, when Kyle gets back. Especially for CoJo.
              Last edited by golden; Sat Mar 11, 2017, 01:24 PM.

              Comment


              • rocwell wrote: View Post
                Ugh... Game day in MIAMI... Against miraculous Miami Heat team. Vegas say we're fucked. 5 points underdogs
                What? Raps are 5 pt underdogs... to the Heat? I know they've been on a roll and we don't have Kyle, but still. That's got to be sucker's bet, no?

                Comment


                • DanH wrote: View Post
                  I think we win this one. Handily. I say JV beasts inside, MIA has nothing to stop DD with, and role players hit shots. Miami's luck runs out.

                  All of that against all logic, but I'm going with it.
                  I hope they put JJ on DeMar. JJ will bite on every pump fake and that's 10-12 easy FTs right there.

                  Comment


                  • golden wrote: View Post
                    What? Raps are 5 pt underdogs... to the Heat? I know they've been on a roll and we don't have Kyle, but still. That's got to be sucker's bet, no?
                    Raps +5 looks great to me to be honest, but Heat is... well.. I don't even know. They're like .800 over the last 25 games.

                    Comment


                    • golden wrote: View Post
                      What? Raps are 5 pt underdogs... to the Heat? I know they've been on a roll and we don't have Kyle, but still. That's got to be sucker's bet, no?
                      20-4 since January. With wins against Cleveland, Golden State and Houston (x2)

                      Comment


                      • golden wrote: View Post
                        I hope they put JJ on DeMar. JJ will bite on every pump fake and that's 10-12 easy FTs right there.
                        Legend tells me Coach Spo is a very good coach and JJ will not do that.....

                        Comment


                        • golden wrote: View Post
                          What? Raps are 5 pt underdogs... to the Heat? I know they've been on a roll and we don't have Kyle, but still. That's got to be sucker's bet, no?
                          Makes sense.....it is better to play as the under dogs

                          Comment


                          • golden wrote: View Post
                            I hope they put JJ on DeMar. JJ will bite on every pump fake and that's 10-12 easy FTs right there.
                            Or JJ knows what DD can do, doesn't bite on any pump fake and shuts DD down

                            Comment


                            • GLF wrote: View Post
                              What, are we just going to continue to lose every time we shoot it badly?
                              Against decent teams like a Atlanta? Yes.
                              Definition of Statistics: The science of producing unreliable facts from reliable figures.

                              Comment


                              • tonious35 wrote: View Post
                                Makes sense.....it is better to play as the under dogs
                                If Lowry was playing tonight, we'd be 2.5 pts dogs anyway. Bookies and bettors adjusted on Heat already. Kinda reminds me of us from few years ago..

                                Comment

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