10 things: Fred VanVleet comes up clutch in gritty win over Heat

Here are 10 takeaways from the Toronto Raptors’ 107-103 win over the Miami Heat in the second of eight seeding games ahead of the 2020 NBA playoffs inside the Orlando bubble.

One — Gritty: It’s never easy against the Miami Heat. Even after the Raptors seized control in the third quarter, the Heat refused to quit. A 17-point advantage quickly turned into a deficit with the likes of Goran Dragic and Kelly Olynyk leading the charge, and the pressure was on to execute down the stretch in a tight game. Toronto happened to make fewer mistakes down the stretch, whereas the Heat coughed up two brutal turnovers as the game quite literally slipped through their hands.

Two — Wow: At first, it looked as if Fred VanVleet would continue to struggle as he did in the scrimmage games. He got his shot blocked a few times, and didn’t quite look to have the ability to create separation. That all turned around in a hurry, as VanVleet poured in a career-high 36 points on an assortment of daredevil drives and deep threes. The main weakness in Miami’s defense is that they have nobody to guard at the point of attack, as most of their best defenders are bulkier wing players. VanVleet got whatever he wanted against Kendrick Nunn and Goran Dragic, and he defiled the corpse of Andre Iguodala with a rainbow three that was reminiscent of Game 6 from the NBA Finals.

Three — Clutch: To top it off, VanVleet also sealed the win with a brilliant steal at the end. The Heat tried to sneak Dragic off a curl to tie the game, but VanVleet read the play and expertly stepped in to reach around Dragic and to break up the pass. A similar move happened on the previous play, where Dragic wanted to feed Jimmy Butler on a cut to the rim, except Kyle Lowry bumped Butler off the pass and the ball went out of bounds. That’s the understated part of why Toronto is one of the best teams in crunch time —there are no weaknesses to attack, and all five defenders are smart and physical.

Four — Innovative: Bam Adebayo is a first-time All-Star, a favorite to win Most Improved Player, and perhaps could even contend for an All-NBA Third-Team. He’s a tricky player to handle because he can move with the basketball, he’s a great playmaker on the move, and he’s athletic around the rim. Nick Nurse’s solution was to put OG Anunoby on Adebayo instead of having a center like Marc Gasol or Serge Ibaka in a more traditional assignment. Anunoby was able to pressure Adebayo all over the floor, neutralize the ability to scan the floor, and when there was a breakdown, one of Gasol or Ibaka was able to help at the rim as usual without worrying about Adebayo getting free on the offensive glass or sneaking inside for a cut. Anunoby is also the rare wing player with enough strength to hold off Adebayo. All in all, it was a creative move by Nurse — but apparently not as creative as Mike Budenholzer and Billy Donovan.

Five — Solid: Many anticipated that a slimmer Gasol would lead to a revival in scoring, but the real benefit has been on defense. Gasol has been elite defensively in the first two seeding games, and that matters way more than if he can ever reach double-digits in scoring on a consistent basis. In the win over the Lakers, Gasol posted a defensive rating of 60.8, and tonight, it was 79.6. Both the Heat and the Lakers got absolutely nothing at the rim nor in the pick-and-roll when Gasol was on the floor. Gasol clogging the paint is nothing new, but seeing the 35-year-old shuffle his feet and pressing Dragic from one three-point line to the next before forcing an airball really speaks to his new and improved conditioning.

Six — Confident: Pascal Siakam isn’t getting featured as often as a No. 1 option, but he’s there when called upon. Siakam opened the game with 11 points in the first quarter through an assortment of jumpers, and was able to get to the basket against Miami’s smaller wing defenders. He was neutralized by the officials whistling him for four fouls — when have you ever seen an All-Star slapped with four ticky-tack calls in six minutes? — but he still finished with 22 points on 14 shots, while also icing the game with two freebies.

Seven — Reps: If there is one ask for Siakam, it’s to remain aggressive in going to the basket. He put in so much work to improve his jumper and the face-up game that it makes sense that he would be eager to trust it, but his bread and butter remains getting to the cup. Case in point: Siakam had good post position against Jae Crowder in crunch time, but instead of backing him down with a few hard dribbles and rising up clean to shoot, Siakam wormed his way to the elbow and shot a fadeaway. He will be unstoppable once he masters that shot, but for now, just stick with what works.

Eight — Annoying: The Raptors played inspired basketball to start the third, with the starters launching a 20-7 run against their counterparts. Miami couldn’t get any offense whatsoever, and they looked dead in the water. What ultimately revived them was the officiating, as the Raptors were whistled for 10 fouls in the third quarter alone. Siakam, who was cooking up until that point, picked up four fouls, while Gasol and Lowry were also docked each time Butler jerked his body in an unnatural fashion. Toronto lost momentum, Miami got a few free throws, and it was suddenly competitive again.

Nine — Nonsense: What really took the cake was the officiating crew’s explanation after checking the video to see Dragic first kicking, then pulling on Anunoby’s legs to stop a fast break. The refs acknowledged that Dragic intentionally yanked Anunoby, but said audibly on the broadcast that Anunoby “did not get injured” so thus it was only a common foul on Dragic. Not only does that set a dangerous precedent, but it also excuses yet another dirty play from a repeated offender in Dragic.

Ten — Worrisome: The second unit has given the Raptors absolutely nothing in the first two games. Norman Powell is reverting to the same old mistakes (falling asleep on defense, leaving layups short), while Serge Ibaka looked hesitant before turning it on in the third quarter. Past that, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson has taken too much of the table offensively to justify his defensive contributions, while Terence Davis has been completely missing in action. Powell and Ibaka will be fine, but it’s questionable after that.

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