Biyombo is a hero and the Raptors are not done yet
The NBA playoffs are here. The games are tighter, the lights are brighter, and the narratives are getting thick. It can be a lot to keep up with but don’t worry we’re here to help. Throughout the NBA postseason, FanSided will be gathering together some of the most talented writers from our network for a daily recap of our favorite stories from the night before.
Welcome to The Rotation.
The shadow of the valley of doubt
Ian Levy | @HickoryHigh | FanSided
With two and a half minutes left in the third quarter of Game 4, the Toronto Raptors had a 14-point lead and, according to Inpredictable.com, and 85 percent chance of winning the game. A lot was riding on that win probability. If it worked out in Toronto’s favor they would draw even with the Cleveland Cavaliers, completing a daring heist of the series momentum from a team that looked ready to sweep them aside just a few days ago. If Toronto lost, the hole would be impossibly deep.
Eight minutes later, at the midway point of the fourth quarter, the Raptors trailed by three and their win probability had plummeted to 24.3 percent. The rubix cube of a Matthew Dellavedova – LeBron James pick-and-roll with Channing Frye in the corner had pushed the Raptors win probability off a cliff and it had tumbled down, finally coming to rest in this deep valley.
Then, another turn. Over the final six minutes, Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan scored 14 points (the Cavs as a team scored seven) and Bismack Biyombo chipped in four rebounds and a block. With two minutes remaining, Toronto’s lead was four, their win probability back to 86.9 percent. It held, Toronto won 106-99, and the Eastern Conference Finals are knotted at two games apiece.
Tracking the Raptor’s win probability across the second half of Game 4 draws this deep valley. What should have been a plateau — a strong lead held and built upon — was eroded by three-pointers from Frye but also by a mental tightness for the Raptors. They are boulders, blunt objects, and the shaken confidence of playoffs past, two seven-game series, and two big losses has them battling the Cavaliers and themselves. That valley of self-doubt was worn down incredibly quickly, their lead carried away in a torrent.
But the Raptors worked their way out. They made the climb and now have a chance to look down on the landscape they left behind. I bet the view is incredible.
Biyomb-Oh, the places you’ll go
Cody Williams | @TheSizzle20 | FanSided, Lake Show Life
Less than a half-hour before the start of Game 4, news broke that the Raptors would finally have Jonas Valanciunas for the first time since Game 3 of the second round. But Jonas didn’t leave the bench during Game 4. Who needs anyone else when Toronto has Bismack Biyombo?
Playing 42 minutes, second only to Kyle Lowry on the Raptors in Game 4 against the Cavs, Biyombo continued to be a workhorse in regards to his rebounding and shot blocking. He finished the night with 14 boards and three blocks. And while those numbers might seem miniscule next to his gaudy Game 3 output, Biyombo also had one of the single most emphatic assertions of dominance that we’ve seen in these playoffs, which Kevin Love can attest to:
But to fully appreciate what Biyombo has been to the Raptors in the past two games and in the absence of Valanciunas, you have to widen the lens and see where this player came from. You have to head back down south to Charlotte and the now (mercifully) extinct Bobcats where the big man from the Democratic Republic of Congo got his start in the NBA.
If you simply look at the statistical output over Biyombo’s tenure in Charlotte, it may not look dissimilar from what he’s done with Toronto. Through four seasons with the Bobcats/Hornets, the now-23-year-old averaged 10.4 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per 36 minutes. In itself, that’s not terrible. However, there’s a reason that Charlotte had not qualms about watching Biyombo walk away from the Queen City.
Whether it was a complete lack of awareness, the apparent presence of clubs where his hands should have been (on both ends of the floor), or simply that he seemingly never progressed in regards to his skill-level from his rookie year to his fourth season, Biyombo seemed like lost-cause and a footnote to something chronicling the mishaps of the Bobcats in the NBA Draft. Once his time in Charlotte was up, wondering if he would every play another meaningful NBA minute—even at his young age—wasn’t far-fetched by any stretch.
Then you see this player for Toronto and wonder how this happened over one offseason. Not only is Biyombo a part of meaningful moments, but he’s single-handedly creating some of those moments and coming through is some of the most crucial junctures of games in the Eastern Conference Finals.
It’s a testament to many things that Biyombo has been able to get to this point in his playing career. Patrick Ewing and his tutelage in Charlotte is deserving of credit, but so too is the culture that has been established in Toronto and how it’s set up to help maximize talents and breed success and the job that Dwane Casey has done in building that environment.
Is this sustainable for the rest of this series for Biyombo? Possibly. For the rest of his career? Again, possibly. But even if this is merely a flash in the pan and is the big man reaching heights that he never will again in his career, that doesn’t make it any less remarkable to see him at least briefly touch the potential he was always lauded for when he was first drafted.
And anyone who denies him at this specific point in his career will get turned away and politely be shown out with a finger wag.
Irving, Love go down very different paths in Monday’s loss
David Ramil | @dramil13 | Hardwood Paroxysm
Following last week’s unexpected Game 3 loss to the Toronto Raptors (it’s hard to believe today but the series had all the makings of a sweep just a few days ago), Cleveland’s LeBron James spoke about the struggles of his two superstar teammates, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love. The duo had combined to hit just 4-of-28 field goal attempts and allowed the Raptors to stave off playoff extinction for just a little while longer.
James, for the most part, seemed positive about the loss and seemed to have faith that his younger sidekicks would bounce back during Monday’s Game 4:
“I think it’s good for them. It’s good for them. First little adversity, first individually in a long time, and I think it’s good for them. I think they’ll be much better, obviously, on Monday, but it’s good for them. We know they’ll be much better.”
There’s just a hint of forced repetition in James’ remarks, as if stating the same thing over and again might make it true. James was, in fact, proved right during Monday’s Game 4 loss but only halfway. Irving would finish the night with 26 points on 11-of-21 shooting while Love’s 10-point outing was, perhaps mercifully, cut short by a rolled ankle late in the game.
Pairing with James on any roster brings a fair amount of scrutiny, as both Irving and Love can attest over the last two seasons. James’ return to the Cavaliers has raised expectations considerably and failure — a theme that Cleveland fans are all-too-familiar with — is no longer an option. While Irving and Love enjoyed individual success prior to James’ return, the salad days of empty statistical calories are over; only winning matters.
All of which is to say that when you struggle as mightily as the duo did in Game 3, you’d better bounce back tremendously when the opportunity next avails itself. Irving did his part, helping Cleveland keep pace until Channing Frye (!) could lead a comeback from a double-digit deficit. Love, conversely, seemed tentative for most of the night, each shot uglier than the one before it. His last attempt was a blocked dunk that is sure to earn Raptors backup center Bismack Biyombo a few extra million in free agency this summer.
Prior to Monday’s game, Justin Tinsley of The Undefeated pointed out the comparison between Irving/Love and James’ former teammate in Miami, Dwyane Wade. Tinsley mentioned how Wade struggled in a 2012 playoff appearance, scoring just five points on a woeful 2-of-13 night that included five turnovers and an angry confrontation with his Heat head coach, Erik Spoelstra. Wade’s response to the subpar outing speaks volumes:
“What happened in Game 4? Wade exploded for 30 points, nine rebounds and six assists on a night in which James notched the greatest near triple-double of his career with 40 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists. Miami won the next two games, as well, capped off by a 41-point, 10-rebound performance from Wade in the decisive Game 6. Miami would win the title that year, by the way.”
While Irving’s response Monday wasn’t nearly as heroic as Wade’s, it was a significant effort to give the Cavaliers at least a chance of returning to Cleveland up 3-1 over the Raptors. Instead, the series is tied and Love’s disastrous showing will likely incur even greater scrutiny than usual.
James’ chose a return path to Cleveland to fulfill a quest of bringing at least one title to the Cavaliers. Irving, at least for one night, proved himself an able comrade to make that dream a reality. Love’s struggles will surely lead to more questions about his worthiness to join James on his Quixotic journey. With each missed shot, the championship windmill turns slowly and desperately further out of reach.