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Raptors reaching the night the all-stars went out

The Raptors return home even with Miami 2-2, but the equilibrium ends there in an eastern semifinal series that requires a warning label.

While Heat veteran star Dwyane Wade is taking over (and finally, apologizing), Toronto all-stars Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan are going clankety-clank in the playoff night, a combined 33 per cent from the field after Monday's fiendish 6-for-28 combined. Lowry's composure unravelled as he fouled out of Game 4 Monday, while one of DeRozan's least effective nights (4/17) earned him a spot on the bench for the final three minutes of the third quarter and most of the fourth.

Charles Barkley says he has a hard time recalling a case of two all-stars shrinking so dramatically under the playoff spotlight. Kenny Smith, playing good cop on their nightly chucklefest, put it down to "taking tough shots" (implicit in that -- stop taking those tough shots, and get your teammates involved).

Shaquille O'Neal: "They're tough - but it's the same shots they've been making all year ... at this point, it's probably in their heads."

The Raptors' narrative from the very start of this postseason has been one of faltering then escaping, at least on the scoreboard. On their all-stars' scorecard it's been a much bleaker story, and at just the time when reputations are redeemed or revoked - they defied history in beating Indiana in the first round, but against a well-coached and (slightly) better opponent it'll take some doing to keep it all going.