TORONTO – Despite the fact they finally managed to snap a seven-game playoff losing streak with their Game 2 win over the Indiana Pacers on Monday, the Toronto Raptors don’t believe they’ve accomplished anything worth celebrating yet.
“There’s no relief,” Raptors all-star point guard Kyle Lowry said about finally getting another playoff win. “We’ve still gotta win three more games. For us now it was a win and we gave them home-court advantage. It wasn’t no relief, we didn’t do our job. We did our job in Game 2, but now we gotta go to Indiana and be focused on trying to execute every play.”
“At this standpoint we’re 1-1,” said reserve forward Patrick Patterson. “It’s better to be 1-1 than 0-2 going to Indiana in a hostile environment on the road, so the only thing we have right now is that the series is even right now. We got the win and now we can just keep moving forward.”
The Raptors held a practice at the BioSteel Centre in Toronto on Wednesday just before flying out to Indianapolis to play the Pacers in Game 3 of their best-of-seven, first-round series on Thursday and weren’t buying much into the idea that they can take a collective exhale from winning just one game.
From a confidence standpoint, the Raptors should feel pretty good about heading out on the road as they, along with the Cleveland Cavaliers, boasted the best road record in the Eastern Conference with 24 wins. With that said, Toronto was a little shaky at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, going 1-1, with that lone win coming in overtime.
A major deciding difference in those two games played in Indiana this season for the Raptors was that in their overtime win they were able to limit the Pacers to just single-digit fastbreak points (just seven), and in that loss they surrendered 14. So far in this playoff series, Indiana has managed 13 and 17 fastbreak points in Games 1 and 2, something Toronto will need to limit if it wants to find success on the road.
“They’re innately a running team – especially with Monta Ellis, he got going, he got them back in the game with his transition game the other night,” Raptors head coach Dwane Casey said. “But we’ve got to do a better job of getting back, make sure we locate our man quickly and mainly stop the ball.”
HOW WILL RAPTORS RESPOND IF VALANCIUNAS GETS DOUBLED?
There’s been little doubt who the Raptors’ best player has been in the series so far.
Seven-foot Lithuanian centre Jonas Valanciunas is seemingly blossoming right before the world’s eyes in these playoffs, averaging 17.5 points and 17 rebounds per game in the two post-season contests he’s terrorized the Pacers in thus far.
So, with Valanciunas having demolished Indiana the way he has in two games, you’d have to think that Pacers coach Frank Vogel and his staff will be looking for a means to slow down the big man, and the obvious solution would be to find ways to get the ball out of his hands.
Therefore, if Vogel does decide he’s going to send double-teams Valanciunas’ way, will he be ready for that?
“Well, he’s gotten better in that area and those situations where reading the speed of how quick they’re coming down, how deep they’re digging,” said Casey on possible doubles coming Valanciunas’ way. “So as far as double-teams he’s better this year than he was last year. I think with him just reading the situation, reading where his outlets are gonna be will be really important if they do decide to double-team.”
Encouraging words from the Raptors coach on the matter, and something he’s probably hoping ends up being true given the fact his two all-stars, Lowry and DeMar DeRozan are a combined 17-for-63 (26.9 per cent) from the field in the series so far, and could probably use the open looks a double-team in the post could possibly provide his two premier perimeter players.
Although, with that said, Lowry still believes the vast majority of the Pacers’ defensive focus will be on him and DeRozan on Thursday.
“I still think they’re going to try to take me and DeMar out,” Lowry said. “I still think that’s going to be part of their plan.”
INJURY UPDATE
Raptors forward Terrence Ross, who was forced to leave Game 2 after undergoing a concussion protocol, was seen taking shots on the BioSteel Centre’s practice court Wednesday, and is looking like he may be good to go for Game 3.
“He’s doing fine. He went to the doctor – saw the doctor yesterday – had no symptoms of concussions,” Casey said. “But going by injury protocol we have to wait and see how he will continue to respond to ramped-up activity and that type of thing. So we’ll list him as questionable for tomorrow and see how he feels then.”
The Raptors coach also said DeMarre Carroll is making steady progress and Casey has liked what he’s seen from the small forward so far.
“I don’t know if he’s 100 per cent yet, but I think he’s getting there. I don’t know if he’s gonna get there this series but we like where he is and we’ll continue to watch his minutes and make sure he’s responding well to playing, and he has. His body’s responded well to the minutes he’s been given.”
Casey was even encouraged by the job Carroll did in Game 2 on Pacers superstar Paul George – who has been nigh-unstoppable, averaging 30.5 points per game on 54.1 per cent shooting in the series – despite the Raptors forward’s quick two fouls early in the game that “kind of took the wind out of [him] a little bit.”
On the latest Hoops, Raptors’ rookie sensation Norm Powell joins the show
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