Raptors film room: KAT and Jalen Brunson cooked an undermanned squad
Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns strolled to 20+ points tonight against an undermanned Raptors team without Collin Murray-Boyles, Immanuel Quickley, or RJ Barrett. Does this team have any chance against New York in the playoffs?
A full recap here:
Here’s Louis Zatzman on the recap:
And, look, the Raptors were not going to compete with the Knicks in this one. Down three major rotation players in Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, and Collin Murray-Boyles, the Raptors’ delicate offensive ecosystem lurched towards disaster. This happens with the team is not healthy. Jonathan Mogbo played real rotation minutes, and though his defence was pristine, his offence remains extraordinarily limited. He was bull-rushing defenders trying to create something, committing wildly unnecessary charges.
But meanwhile, there’s something real happening beneath the surface for Toronto. In Toronto’s two-game homestand against the Miami Heat, Murray-Boyles defined the team and its identity with grinding physicality. Now Walter stepped into the position of quietly perfect role player.
In the second quarter, Walter is in the dunker spot, and Sandro Mamukelashvili drives towards him. There are two defenders waiting for him –his own, and Walter’s. So Walter sprints into the corner, pulling both defenders out of Mamukelashvili’s way, opening a relatively uncontested layup. This is what respect looks like — layups for teammates.
He opens the third by recognizing his defender overplaying him as he waddled towards a ball screen, so he jets backdoor, catches the ball, and draws free throws. That’s activity with intention. He hits a few more triples in the second half, setting plenty of ball screens as Toronto tried to jump-start its offence. After he hits a straightaway triple midway through the fourth quarter, his 15 points are at that point a team-high.
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