Toronto Raptors 130, Indiana Pacers 119
Toronto figured it out.
It’d been two weeks since the Raptors last snuck out with a victory this season and over that stretch Toronto has dropped four games in heartbreaking fashion. On most nights, the Raptors looked like a team still figuring out how to win games, unable to quite get over the edge.
On Monday, they showed that growth.
RJ Barrett called his own number on consecutive possessions, pushing a nine-point Raptors lead to 13 after Toronto’s offense stalled early in the fourth. When the Pacers responded, Toronto went right back to Barrett again. He nailed a tough floater, followed it up with a fadeaway jumper, and then nailed a step-back jumper over Obi Toppin to ice the game for Toronto.
“Feels great to get a win. Feels great. We earned that one,” Barrett said. “They’re a team that can put up a lot of points, but we’re able to weather the storm. Played well. Guys that are just across the board played well.”
Don’t let all the talk of modern small-ball basketball fool you, size still matters in the NBA.
Jakob Poeltl showed as much Monday, punishing the Pacers who were forced to make do without their entire center rotation. Indiana tried to slow Poeltl with its undersized forwards, using some combination of Jarace Walter, Obi Toppin, and rookie Enqiue Freeman to size up Poeltl.
It didn’t work.
Toronto got to the hoop with little resistance, taking advantage of Poeltl’s size and repeatedly going to the 7-foot Austrian out of pick-and-roll opportunities. Barrett continued to show his improving playmaking chops, feeding Poeltl with easy dump-off passes near the hoop. When Barrett did take it himself, Poeltl was there to clean up the glass if he missed.
On one first-half possession, Barrett missed a layup leading to three straight Poeltl offensive rebounds before Poeltl finally converted the put-back. Indiana simply had no answers for Poeltl’s size and while it’s not going to be as easy as it was on Monday against other teams, Poeltl’s emergence this season shows how valuable he can be for this franchise.
“I think what we’re doing over here really well is team is finding him. He’s playing really well in pick-and-rolls,” Raptors coach Darko Rajaković said. “He’s playing with more force, going downhill and trying to dunk some of those situations. That’s a testament to his work.”
Poeltl finished the night with 30 points and one wild one-handed slam dunk courtesy of a great find from Gradey Dick.
Indiana’s lack of size meant Barrett could have his way with the Pacers too.
Pascal Siakam’s defense wasn’t enough to keep Barrett out of the paint as the Canadian forward got inside with ease Monday night. He got to his left hand and when Indiana did send help his way, he made smart decisions, finding teammates and playmaking without issues.
Barrett played hero for Toronto late, finishing the night with a season-high 39 points on 13-for-21 shooting to go with nine rebounds and five assists. His performance set a franchise record for most scored by a Canadian in Raptors history.
“That’s cool,” Barrett said. “I didn’t know that, but that was just a testament to our team. I got open on a lot of screens from Jak, Mogbo, just everybody. And then I was just trusting the work that put in every day, and coach putting the ball in my hand, and trusted me.”
Want to know how the vibes are on this Raptors team?
Just watch what happens when Garrett Temple checks into a game these days. The 38-year-old saw rotation minutes for against Indiana and proved he’s still got some gas in the tank. He hit a three-pointer in the second quarter that led to an eruption on Toronto’s bench as the Pacers called a timeout. Moments later he stripped Jarace Walker, took the ball to the hoop before finding Poeltl for a dunk.
“It’s so fun to see younger guys and his teammates that cheer for him, they want him to succeed,” Rajaković said. “All he’s doing is just executing our schemes and what we need to do on a really, really high level. That’s being professional.”
Temple doesn’t see much playing time, but it’s not hard to tell what he means to this team as a veteran for this organization.
Chris Boucher had one of the craziest sequences you’ll ever see in the first quarter on Monday night, blocking back-to-back three-point attempts on a single possession. He first snuffed out a Johnny Furphy three before recovering seconds late to swat away another three from Obi Toppin.
The Raptors will have a couple of days off before Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves come to town on Thursday for a 7:30 p.m. ET tipoff.