Raptors VS Heat (Game 4)

Series Tied 2-2

DWAAAAAAAAAYNE WAAAAAAAAAAADE! If you live near me, you probably heard this a lot last night. This was a game where my heart was pounding hard in the final minutes of regulation. Everytime Wade touched the ball, I was in suspense, wondering what he was going to do. This was an amazing game to watch and I feel bad for anyone that missed it.

I turned on the game towards the end of the first quarter and the first thing I saw was this giant center playing for the Raptors that looked like King Gryph's NBA 2K16 MyCareer player. You could just tell the affect that Valanciunas had on the team. When this Nogueira guy was in the game, you could tell he wasn't familiar with the offense and the Raptors really didn't run any sets when this guy was in. They did pick and roll with him and that was about it. However, Biyombo played great in the absence of Jonas Valanciunas. He was great defensively and crashed the boards well. The team gave him tons of touches (something that the Raptors didn't really do much with Valanciunas for some odd reason) and it proved to be beneficial. While he really didn't have any assists, he really got the ball moving as he passed the ball all the time.

The 4th quarter and overtime really came down to who could make shots. Both teams played great defense but it was the Heat that was the team that was able to make tough shots. Not to mention, the Raptors took a lot of their shots from mid-range. They didn't shoot any 3s past the last 2 minute of the 4th quarter and took few shots in the paint. The Heat got to the rim with Dwayne Wade and Joe Johnson.

Goran Dragic just seemed off last night despite scoring 15 points. Shots that the guy would usually make just weren't falling. He made some great moves towards the end of the game but just didn't look like himself. Shots just weren't falling. The Heat could really use better production from him next game.

Anyways, I love this series! 3-4 of games have gone into overtime! Hopefully the series continues to be close like this and we can have a game 7 come right down to the wire.

Raptors VS Pacers (Game 5)

Raptors Lead Series 3-2

The Raptors won a big game last night. For the Pacers to beat the Raptors in the series, they now have to win the next two games. The Raptors are finally in control of the series. Here's why.

DeMar DeRozan finally looks like DeMar DeRozan. He had 34 points as he shot 45.5% from the field and more importantly, he shot 12-13 from the free throw line. He took plenty of this mid-range shots and got to the rim with ease. He was a huge reason this Raptors team won. However, this game was really close, a lot closer than the Raptors would have liked. Kyle Lowry still needs to step it up. He shot 3-11 from the field and 1-5 from three. George Hill outscored him. They need him to step it up.

I was very impressed with how great Bismack Biyombo was in this game. He had 10 points and 16 rebounds in the game and was a +10 on the floor. He helped this Raptors team stay in this game when the Pacers had a 17 point lead over the Raptors. Norman Powell was also great in the game and a big benefactor.

Paul George played great. He was amazing. He shot 57.9% from the field, had 39 points, 8 assists, and 8 rebounds. He really had his team winning. While he probably should've taken the last shot, he made the right play. If there was about 1 more second on the clock, the Pacers would've won that game. But they lost since the shot didn't get off in time. However, this game shouldn't have come down to that last shot. Somehow, in 7 minutes and 29 seconds that Ty Lawson played in the game, the Pacers lost 18 points from their lead just with Lawson being in there. Him and C.J. Miles were horrible off the bench. Rodney Stuckey shot 1-10 from the field, but he actually played solid defense and he ended with a +1 for the team. I don't even know how the Pacers can even play Miles and Lawson next game.

I do want to mention that the Raptors had 12 assists in the game. It was horrible. Their ball movement was so stagnant and I'm really shocked they won the game. I think that if the Pacers didn't have horrible bench production, they would have won. The Pacers bench ruined the 4th quarter. Completely ruined it. The Pacers only had 9 points in the 4th. Only 9! It was horrible. The Raptors are very lucky that Paul George didn't play the whole quarter. 

Kings VS Raptors: Toronto Needs Valanciunas Back

The Kings and the Raptors went head to head on December 20th. The Kings came out of Toronto with the win and it is clear that the Raptors are struggling. Why are they struggling though? The main reason is because both Valanciunas and Carroll are out of the starting line-up due to injuries. Let's jump into the game.

The Kings Dominated On Offense
This Sacramento Kings team couldn't miss the other night. Maybe this had something to do with Carroll out, but the Kings still shot 52.6% from the field as well as shooting 42.9% from 3-point range. Of course, this isn't that surprising since the Kings are 5th in field goal percentage and also 5th in 3-point percentage. It also isn't surprising that the Raptors only shot 37.2% from the field and 27.6% from the 3-point line knowing that they are 21st in field goal percentage and 17th in 3-point percentage.

Kyle Lowry Had a Short Night
Lowry really struggled in this game, and he never got to go on a hot streak considering the fact that he was ejected in the 4th quarter. When he argued with a call, the ref gave him a tech. Lowry continued to argue and was thrown out of the game with another tech. The Raptors were only down by 7 at that point.

Bismack Is No Jonas
While Biyombo had 13 rebounds in the game, rebounding is about the only thing that he did. He shot 0-7 from the field and had 2 points off of free throws. He didn't have an assist or a steal. He only had 1 block defensively. They need Jonas. Bismack just doesn't have the offensive caliber that Jonas has on the floor. The Kings had 52 points in the paint and Jonas would have cut that down. Biyombo can rebound and that is about it.

The Kings Of Tempo
There were tons of fast break points for this Kings team and the Raptors couldn't stop it. The thing is, when you have DeMarcus Cousins getting 5 fastbreak points in a game, then your guy are not getting back. Everybody on the Kings were getting out and running in transition and the Raptor were not getting back.

Rajon Rondo Is a Beast
He was the reason why they won this game. He had 19 points along with 13 assists. This kid had 12 points in the paint. 12. He was getting to the rim and finishing on Lowry. He was getting his teammates involved and getting high percentage shots in the paint and Lowry couldn't guard him. Rondo is showing that he deserves to be a starting point guard. Without him, I don't think that the Kings win this game.

Other Points

• DeMar DeRozan lead the way for the Raptors with 28 points. He also added 7 rebounds.
• All 5 of the Kings starters had over 10 points. The team really moved the ball well as they had 26 assists.
• Omri Caspi had a double-double, 15 point and 11 rebounds. He has proved to be a great asset for the team. Expect him to keep up his production.
• The Raptors were short-handed and only played 3 guys off the bench, even after Lowry was ejected. Hopefully they can get Carroll and Jonas back soon, because they don't have much of a bench without them.

As you can see, the Raptors are suffering in some areas without Carroll and Jonas. Hopefully they can get them back soon. Hope you guys liked the post. See you next time on NBA Inside The Play Nation.