Jonas Valanciunas has been the Raptors star in the playoffs
By Jared Wade
Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan are not producing like All-Stars. They shot a combined 8-for-32 (25.0%) in the Toronto Raptors Game 1 loss to the Indiana Pacers and followed that up with a 9-for-31 (29.0%) shooting night.
Paul George has completely shut down DeRozan in particular, and his inability to get the types of shots he is accustomed to making or get to the free-throw line is the biggest reason the Pacers are heading back to Indiana with home-court advantage in a 1-1 series.
After the Game 1 loss, DeRozan was confident that he would bounce back. “I’m pretty sure I won’t go 5-for-19 again,” he said at the post-game press conference.
DeRozan was right.
He shot 5-for-18 in Game 2.
So, congratulations on that improvement.
Regardless of individual output, however, the Raptors did their job in Game 2. They came out and smoked the Pacers to avoid falling into a 2-0 hole as they head back to Indiana. It was a huge game for the franchise and a convincing win.
And the biggest reason the Raptors remain in control of the series is literally the biggest reason: Jonas Valanciunas. Where Toronto’s guards are failing, Jonas is filling in — and then some.
He was the story of Game 2, from its opening possession to the Raptors’ final bucket. Game 2 was nearly over in the first quarter due to his dominance of the paint, and he has completely controlled the offensive glass in both contests thus far. He simply cannot be boxed out this week, and that is a testament to his intensity and growth as a player in terms of understanding how to position himself down low.
But this is also a direct result of coach Dwane Casey’s relentless plan to force Indiana’s bigs to guard people away from the hoop. Whether it is through cuts, dribble penetration, or pick-and-rolling Indiana to death, whenever Valanciunas is in the game, Toronto is getting a numbers advantage underneath.
The result, time and time again, is easy buckets for Jonas, whether that be from catching a lob, getting the ball earlier on his roll, or enabling him an unfettered putback while the Pacers bigs are busy elsewhere scrambling around to cover his open teammates.
In Game 2, Jonas’ work on the first play of the game set the stage for how the whole night would unfold.
There may not be anything tactically wrong here for Indiana. DeMar DeRozan gets the ball in some space as Paul George chases, so Ian Mahinmi opts to shut off the paint. It works. DeMar doesn’t shoot but dishes out to Scola for a 3. Unfortunately for Indiana, however, Mahinmi is slow to get back to the rim and that leaves Paul George all alone to try to box out Valanciunas.
It doesn’t work. JV tips the ball to himself then up and in for the bucket and the foul. (Note: This was actually later ruled not a basket for some reason.)
Valanciunas’ determination on the offensive glass has been a huge problem for Indiana. In Game 1, he had an incredible 11 offensive boards and 19 overall. In Game 2, it was 5 offensive and 15 overall. He is owning the boards.
Although it is the pick-and-roll, with Jonas setting a high screen, that is destroying the Pacers the most.
At one point, the Raptors used it on two straight possessions. It led to two straight layups for Valanciunas, extending a 10-point first-quarter lead to 14.
Ian Mahinmi, who later left the game with a sore back and clearly wasn’t moving well all game long, couldn’t recover in either instance after trying to initially shut off Kyle Lowry’s penetration
In another instance, the pick and roll took longer to pay dividends. After setting the initial screen for DeRozan, JV just hung around the paint long enough (illegally staying in the lane for 6 seconds, it is worth noting) that the Pacers lost him as the ball was passed around and Lowry darted across the baseline.
The ensuing lob and dunk were among the easiest points he has ever scored.
The result was a monster opening quarter in Game 2 in which Jonas Valanciunas scored 13 points and grabbed 7 boards. It was a critical 12 minutes for a team with a history of bad playoff performances playing at home and down 0-1 in the series. DeRozan, meanwhile, shot 2-for-9 in the period.
But it didn’t stop in the first quarter.
Jonas would continue to control the game whenever he was on the floor, and if the pick and roll wasn’t leading to points for him, it was getting Lowry and DeRozan the space they needed to, finally, make a few shots.
The Raptors franchise has a horrific playoff history.
They entered the 2015 postseason as a favorite with home-court advantage against the Washington Wizards. They dropped Games 1 and 2 by a combined 18 points. Then the Wizards won the next two to complete the sweep, taking the clinching Game 4 by 31 points.
Lowry averaged just 12 points per game in the series on a woeful 31.6% shooting. DeRozan’s output was better — 20.3 point, 6.3 rebounds, and 5.8 assists per game — but his accuracy was also poor, as he hit just 40.0% of his attempts.
But this goes back further than the team’s current All-Stars.
The franchise has only made it past the first round once. And even that 2001 playoff series was mired in (fake) controversy. The morning of Game 7 against the Philadelphia 76ers, Vince Carter went to his college graduation in North Carolina before flying to the game. The Raptors lost by 1 point, and the Sixers went on to NBA Finals. The outcry against Carter was preposterous, but it existed and, fair or not, set a tone that this is not a franchise to be taken seriously.
The current play of the team’s guards is not doing much to change that view.
So far, the Raptors All-Stars — the recently dubbed 6 Gods of Toronto — are not leading the franchise forward. Their play doesn’t suggest a brighter future.
But Dwane Casey has found a way to overcome their early struggles. The oft-criticized Valanciunas is the difference so far.
Through two games, the 6 Gods should be rejoicing that they play alongside a 7-footer. Jonas is the biggest reason they are still in control of this series and not facing more severe criticism for their inability to produce in the playoffs for a second straight year.