"The Hawks, without Trae Young in the lineup, were far more potent defensively. Capable of switching a lot of actions and far less willing to allow the Raptors any type of advantage through driving lanes or screen craft. The result? The Raptors called upon their shot maker extraordinaire, Brandon Ingram, who scored 8 of the Raptors first 11 and did so while going 100% from the field."
"Atlanta was doing a lot of their scoring off of cuts against a sleepy Raptors defense, and it makes sense that they would, because they came into this game as one of the most efficient cutting offenses in the NBA. The Raptors started in a deficit, but true to form, they climbed back into the game with a transitional bench lineup."
Hawks' switch-heavy, cutting-oriented defense disrupted the Raptors early without Trae Young, limiting driving lanes and screen advantages. Brandon Ingram scored 8 of the Raptors' first 11 points and went 100% from the field to keep them competitive while Poeltl and Quickley sought consistent production. Atlanta generated efficient scoring through cuts and forced turnovers, turning six Raptor turnovers into 10 points in the first quarter. A sloppy start to the second quarter allowed a 13-2 run as the Raptors began 1-for-12, compounded by gambles on defense. Poeltl struggled to move and defend, while Okongwu produced extra possessions by pounding the glass.
Read at Raptors Republic
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]