The opportunity was there for the Toronto Raptors and this time they took advantage of it. Facing an injury-riddled Golden State Warriors team playing without stars Kevin Durant and late-scratch Klay Thompson — whose presence was missed on both ends of the floor — the Raptors were presented a chance to take a 2-1 series lead on the road at Oracle Arena.
Easier said than done, except, the Raps did just that. Steph Curry, a one-man offence while not flanked by his fellow perimeter stars, dropped a career playoff-best 47 points, but it didn’t matter against a Raptors team locked in offensively — nailing 17 three-pointers after falling flat from beyond the arc in Game 2 — and suffocating defensively.
The result? A loud 123-109 win, the aforementioned series lead, and a chance to really hold the Warriors to the fire on Friday night.
The Raptors benefited from strong performances all around, from go-to players like Kawhi Leonard, Pascal Siakam, and Kyle Lowry all enjoying strong nights, while supporting cast members like Serge Ibaka, Fred VanVleet, and a resurgent Danny Green stepped up to help the team secure a no-doubt win.
As we do following each and every Raptors playoff game, let’s check in to see what the out-of-market media are saying about the Raptors after Game 3:
ESPN — The Raptors aren’t afraid to ‘let it rip,’ and they’re not afraid of the defending champs
ESPN’s Jackie MacMullen looks at how the Raptors rose to the occasion and soundly dismissed any pressure of playing on the road against a modern-day dynasty:
…Yet one thing was abundantly clear Wednesday at Oracle Arena: Toronto had no intention of wilting under the pressure of the championship pedigree of its undermanned opponent. When the Warriors charged, the Raptors fended off their run with clutch shooting. During stretches when the Raptors faltered offensively, they righted themselves with defensive stops.
In fact, in the wake of their 123-109 Game 3 victory in one of the most intimidating buildings in the NBA, the Raptors might be in the process of crafting some promising genetic coding of their own.
“That’s true,” said Serge Ibaka, who blocked six shots in the game and knocked down a monster wing jumper with 10 minutes to play. “We are working on our own DNA, and it’s defense. There are some nights when you’ll make all your shots, but it won’t happen every night. One thing for sure that we can do is defend.”
No one had to explain to the Raptors what was at stake. Kevon Looney is out for the rest of the series. Klay Thompson was a very late scratch because of a balky hamstring. Kevin Durant missed his eighth consecutive game because of a strained calf. For Toronto, there was no option but to win. Lose the game, and it would be a death knell for a team that is on this grand stage for the first time and must take advantage.
…The Raptors are not naïve. They know high-level, MVP-caliber reinforcements could be on tap for Game 4. But they feel confident they are building something here. Kill the beast? Not yet, not hardly, but the Warriors are vulnerable, and Toronto is intent on exploiting their weaknesses.
The New York Times — Raptors Beat Warriors in Game 3 of the N.B.A. Finals
Marc Stein and Benjamin Hoffman highlight some key moments — and players — down the stretch in the Raptors’ big win:
4th Quarter: Warriors hustle, but Toronto’s Fred VanVleet quiets the crowd.
The Warriors had a little momentum going, but Fred VanVleet, as he has done so many times recently, hit a wild 3-pointer that pushed his team’s lead to 13 points with 1:39 remaining. For all intents and purposes, that should end this one.
Stephen Curry had cut the lead to 10 points with a pair of free throws following a play in which he dove for a steal and then wrestled with Danny Green for the ball, drawing a foul.
Marc Gasol answered with a short jumper and then Curry fought for another loose ball, ending up in a jump ball with Kyle Lowry which he won, setting up a Draymond Green layup.
That type of defensive intensity from a player not known for it had the crowd at Oracle Arena energized, but VanVleet’s 3-pointer, which came on a possession in which Golden State had done a good job of making Toronto work, quieted the crowd considerably.
4th Quarter: Serge Ibaka is coming through for the Raptors.
Among the many standout performers in this game from the Raptors, Serge Ibaka deserves a ton of credit for his work on the defensive end. The power forward has six blocks to go with his 6 points and four rebounds, repeatedly making Golden State pay for trying to get anywhere near the basket.
4th Quarter: Toronto’s bigs are having their way with DeMarcus Cousins.
The Warriors reeled off a 6-0 run with a long 2-pointer by Quinn Cook and free throws by Andre Iguodala and Stephen Curry, but Serge Ibaka got four points of the lead back with baskets on consecutive possessions in which he used his size to bully his way to the hoop.
DeMarcus Cousins, who had been so strong at the end of Game 2, is looking like a liability for Golden State, with absolutely no lift on his attempts under the basket, and Toronto’s bigs are handling him easily.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXljysne5f0
Deadspin — Raptors Snatch Back Home-Court Advantage With Game 3 Beatdown Of Gutted Warriors
Deadspin’s Chris Thompson wishes the depleted Warriors would stand a better chance against a Toronto team that took care of business and ensured that, unlike the first two games of the series, Game 3 didn’t come down to the wire:
…The Raptors, who are very very very good at basketball, did what they were supposed to do.
…Every team to ever win the Finals in NBA history benefited from luck, so it would be silly and unfair to hold it against the Raptors that the Warriors team they beat Wednesday night was downright unrecognizable. They have no control over which Warriors suit up and play, and a responsibility to beat the team in front of them, whether they’re whole or not. But it’s also true that the more the Warriors are depleted by injuries, the more it becomes the case that the only interesting outcome is the Warriors winning. The Raptors did well to handle their business, sure, but it hardly makes for a stirring showcase, unless you are especially a fan of euthanasia.
…By the midpoint of the fourth quarter the Warriors were too frantic and the Raptors were too comfortable, and the result became inevitable.
L.A. Times — Raptors hit big shots to beat Warriors in Game 3
The roles were reversed on Wednesday night, writes Tania Ganguli, with the Raptors leaving the Warriors exhausted and frustrated like the defending champs have done to so many others so many times:
…Play stopped for a foul and Curry resisted its pull. He pushed himself off the ground. He jogged back to the team he’d tried so hard to carry through the most adverse NBA Finals game they’d ever been through together.
It’s usually the Warriors’ opponent that finds itself in this situation in the Finals, with one superstar tasked with so much more than he realistically can accomplish. This time Curry was that star and the Toronto Raptors took full advantage.
…The traditional third-quarter onslaught by the Warriors came later than usual, but each time the Warriors threatened to close the gap, the Raptors countered. Toronto’s lead got as high as 17 points as they beat back each Golden State wave.
Curry refused to allow the game to slip too far away. When he could muster the energy to do so, he’d harass Raptors players into turnovers or silly decisions. He dove for a loose ball with 2:38 left in the game, forcing a jump ball.
“Just competitiveness and trying to play until the buzzer,” Curry said.
“It’s the Finals, whatever you try to do to win the game. Nothing special, to be honest, it’s just trying to make the right play, give everything you got, sacrifice your body when you have the opportunity.”
It wasn’t enough to turn back the Raptors on Wednesday night, but the Warriors took heart in their effort, and in the prospect of having a more complete roster when the series reconvenes Friday.
ESPN — Marc Gasol was once a basketball dinosaur before becoming a Raptor
Jackie MacMullan looks at the evolution of Gasol as the veteran centre adapts to a changing role, and game:
…New York Knicks coach David Fizdale can relate to the frustration about Gasol’s reluctance to let it fly. When Gasol and Fizdale were together in Memphis, it was a point of contention. After watching Game 1, Fizdale notes, “You can almost feel Marc saying, ‘Should I?’ But he has to take those shots.”
…According to ESPN Stats & Information, Gasol has been one of the league’s most effective 3-point shooters this postseason. Of the 32 players who have taken at least 50 3s in the playoffs, he ranks 12th with a shooting percentage of 38.8. When Gasol drains the long ball, it pays off for the Raptors, opening up the floor for the likes of Kawhi Leonard and Pascal Siakam.
Even the threat of Gasol from beyond the arc is an asset. The two-month Raptor knocked down only one of four shots from beyond the arc but pitched in 17 points, seven rebounds and four assists in 26 minutes in Game 3. Those minutes offered valued space on the floor, and Toronto secured a 2-1 advantage behind its best offensive showing of the Finals.
“We’d like him to shoot them, especially when it’s a rhythm shot,” Nurse says, “but Marc is one of the great big-men passers. It’s always harder to convince guys to shoot more than to convince guys to shoot less. That’s the battle we’re in a little bit with Marc.”
Left unsaid is this: Toronto needs more from its thoughtful big man, who, like so many centers, has had to contend with a shift away from a traditional low-post attack. Fizdale spent a tumultuous year and a half in Memphis insisting that Gasol be a more aggressive scorer, a stretch-5 who could shoot the 3 and excel in a pace-and-space system.
“You know,” Fizdale says, chuckling, “what he’s doing now.”
“I tried to tell him, ‘It’s adapt or die.'”
Gasol decided to adapt. But he reserves the right to challenge the coaches who press him to evolve.
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