Raptors 905 thrash Noblesville Boom without two-way players
The Raptors 905 were without all three of their two-way players for the first time this season against the Noblesville Boom on Thursday.
Up against it, they embodied “playing the right way,” with fluid offensive motion and unwavering defensive attention powering a 117-98 win, despite missing their two leading scorers, AJ Lawson and Alijah Martin, who were assigned to the Toronto Raptors.
Even absent their best players, there’s a winning residue that permeates successful teams. In this game, the 905’s depth made the most of their opportunities and showed they can shoulder a greater load as they added to their Eastern Conference-leading 7-1 record.
It was also announced over an hour before tip-off that lead guard Chucky Hepburn underwent surgery on his meniscus in his right knee and will miss a minimum of six weeks, at which point he’ll be re-evaluated.
So the 905 opened the game with Tyreke Key operating as the bring-up ball handler and initiating offence.
For a group full of tertiary playmakers at best, the ball had energy. It was zipping around the court like it had a life of its own, and one full of vigor and zest at that.
“Our second unit guys do an incredible job moving the ball anyway,” said head coach Drew Jones after the game.
“We played connected basketball, we sprayed it, we touched the paint, and I felt like we made all the right plays. And when you do that everyone else feel empowered to make the next one.” Jones added.
Double drag screens, pick n’ roll with non-traditional ball handlers and the aforementioned sentient ball resulted in easy points at the rim – David Roddy post ups, Patrick McCaw cuts, open corner 3s.
Key soon showed his value off the ball too, ghosting a screen and banging a triple from the top of the floor.
Even without their core players, the core tenets of the 905’s game remained, and they effectively ate Noblesville alive in the gaps to start the game to the tune of four steals and six forced turnovers in the first six minutes.
They traded in their hearty diet of half-court rim attempts for silver-spoon transition buckets. Not all of them were easy though; Key flung himself at the rim through traffic and full extended to barely get the ball over a contest, off the glass, and in. Later, the six-foot-two guard skied for a lob from Roddy in transition, caught it at its summit and got a touch layup to go. He was tied for a team-high with 26 points on 9-of-15 shooting as the game entered garbage time in the fourth.
The 905 were pulling out every cut in the book. Roddy Laker cut for a clean finish, Joiner blade cut for points. Soon they were going to have to start coming up with new names for their sprints to the rim. Big Body Roddy was the other 905er with 26 late in the fourth, adding eight rebounds and eight assists.
Key and Roddy also each had three steals apiece as they fought for every inch of defensive ground.
Thanks to their ability to access the rim in the most efficient ways possible, the 905 carried a 56-42 lead into halftime even though they went 1-for-11 from 3-point range.
Then in the third, the levys broke, and they shot 6-of-11 on triples. The 905’s combination of ping-pong passing and drive-and-kicks kept creating good looks and they eventually started falling.
“We don’t really worry about the (results),” said Jarkel Joiner, who joined the barrage by running off a get action and banging a step-back 3.
“Everybody wants great results, but when you executed the play the right way, or you’re just playing the right way, you can live with the results. Every time if it’s the right way. We know shots (are) going to fall. Shots missing is a part of the game.”
Head coach Drew Jones and the 905 ran effective actions too. He called for 77 (a double drag), Tyson Degenhart slipped the first screen, caught on the roll, drew help, and found an open Quincy Guerrier in the corner. A chin screen resulted in a Degenhart post-up and kick out for 3.
The cohesive offence and suffocating defence opened up a 27-point lead midway through the third on the back of a 20-6 run.
Key drilled back-to-back triples to start the fourth quarter extending the 905 lead to 33. He’d missed three straight after making one early in the first, but you can’t keep a good shooter down.
“They’re not always going to fall, but when you generate great looks, they’re eventually going to fall for us.” Key said.
While the Raptors were without their two-ways, that shouldn’t remain a theme going forward, as they’ve consistently been available throughout the season due to a lack of need at the NBA level.
Except for Hepburn, who will be out for at least six of the 12 weeks remaining in the G League season.
I’ve written about this ad nauseum lately, but Hepburn’s absence has had a significant impact on how the 905 play on both ends.
He’s by far their best player at the traditional point-guard stuff: Running pick n’ roll, using his dribble to navigate the middle of the floor, keeping the offence humming with smart passes.
Defensively Jones aptly described him as “the head of the snake.” A fervid, relentless presence at the point of attack that bothers ball handlers like a mosquito on a tepid summer day.
So far, Joiner, Hoggard and now Key have filled in admirably, providing enough of a facsimile of Hepburn to sustain the 905’s success through pressure, run outs and keeping the ball moving.
“He’s ball tough,” Jones said of Key. “You can’t take it from him, he doesn’t dance with it. He gets to his spots and he initiates offence.”
Even when Lawson and Martin return, the 905 will need its depth guards to keep punching up to maintain its historic pace.
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