10 things from Raptors-Warriors (Game 4)

Here are 10 takeaways from the Toronto Raptors’ 105-92 win over the Golden State Warriors in Game 4 of the NBA Finals.

One — If the Raptors were to have any chance of stealing another game on the road, they needed Kawhi Leonard to have another all-time performance, which is exactly what happened. Leonard put the team on his back to start by scoring 14 of the Raptors’ 17 points in the first quarter, and he also came alive with another 17 points in the third to extend the lead. Leonard was the best player on the floor, and he’s only starting to gain momentum as the series progresses.

Two — What’s strange is that the Warriors had tremendous success in the first three games by trapping and doubling Leonard whenever possible. But for some inexplicable reason, the Warriors reverted back to playing him one-on-one, and Leonard feasted accordingly. He dropped a Michael Jordan turnaround jumper over Andre Iguodala in the post. He rose up and shot over top Shaun Livingston and Draymond Green as if they weren’t even there. And it was straight-up laughable when the Warriors threw a G-Leaguer in Alfonzo McKinnie on the best player in the playoffs. Golden State needs to go back to what worked earlier in the Finals to have any chance of stealing the series.

Three — The Raptors broke the game open with a 15-4 run to end the third quarter. Draymond Green picked up a technical after snapping on an official for denying him free throws on a flop, and Golden State’s defensive focus just snapped from there. Iguodala and Green sloppily clutched at Leonard to send him to the line, Klay Thompson fell asleep and lost Leonard for a baseline jumper, Livingston and McKinnie just didn’t stand a chance on an island, and Serge Ibaka mixed in a jumper and a layup during that stretch to push the lead into double digits.

Four — Kyle Lowry was masterful in quarterbacking the offense during the second half. The Warriors had no answer for the middle pick-and-roll as Lowry just picked them apart with his passing. He found Pascal Siakam slipping to the rim for an and-one, fed Ibaka for an and-one, worked a quick one-two with Ibaka for a dunk, and finally found Siakam rolling to the rim to hold the Warriors at bay in the fourth quarter. Granted, much of this was on the Warriors for not being able to play mistake-free basketball, but credit Lowry for seeing the play and creating efficient offense that got the team going.

Five — In order to win a game on the road in the playoffs, you need a heroic performance from an unexpected contributor, and Ibaka stepped up his game. He scored two putbacks, finished efficiently on rolls to the rim, drilled three jumpers including a transition three and a crossover into a pull-up jumper, and was phenomenal on the glass and with his lane intimidation. Ibaka was brimming with confidence, and that manifested itself on the floor not only with his scoring but also with his quick decision making. Ibaka finished with 20 points on 9-of-12 shooting, and the Raptors are now 8-0 in the playoffs when Ibaka scores in double-digits. Given the sorry state of affairs for the Warriors’ frontcourt players, there’s no reason why Ibaka can’t replicate this effort.

Six — Golden State got by in the first half by pressing their size advantage. The Warriors attacked through the post on split cuts that forced the Raptors into switches with smalls guarding bigs, while Thompson feasted on Lowry with his turnaround jumpshots. Nick Nurse eventually combatted that by going to his ultra-big lineup of Ibaka and Marc Gasol, which stopped the bleeding temporarily. Once the Raptors were able to get stops, they could then dictate tempo, and they regained control of the game.

Seven — Curry might not like it, but Nurse returned to the “janky” box-and-one defense for three possessions before halftime. The Raptors got a shot-clock violation, a bricked three from Quinn Cook, and Curry split a pair of free throws after he launched himself into Lowry in a move that might have made James Harden blush. It was a smart call because Thompson had just sat down, which left Curry as the only threat to score. And even though the Warriors did immediately recognize the strategy and sent Cook to solve it, that’s still ultimately a win for the Raptors as they would much rather the offense shift to Cook instead of Curry.

Eight — DeMarcus Cousins just can’t move, and it’s painfully obvious. He has absolutely no lift, and it’s hurting his finishing on the inside. There were instances where he caught it deep in the post, and without even looking at the rim, Cousins kicked it out to reset the offense. It was Gasol-esque. Cousins is also a liability on defense as he doesn’t even have the energy to give chase to loose balls and rebounds. Kevon Looney ended up logging more minutes than Cousins despite the fractured collarbone, and quite frankly, even Andrew Bogut should see more time. Cousins is just hurting the Warriors at this point.

Nine — The only concern out of this game was that Fred VanVleet caught an inadvertent elbow from Shaun Livingston and was forced to leave the game. VanVleet stayed down for quite a bit, and immediately headed to the locker room where he received seven stitches. He also lost a tooth, and looked positively mangled after the game. The Raptors ruled that VanVleet didn’t have a concussion and he was made available to return, but they should really keep a closer eye on him as they return to Toronto. VanVleet is a crucial piece in this series, as the Raptors need his shot-making and his pesky on-ball defense against Curry.

Ten — The Raptors haven’t been here before, but they’re acting as if they have. For all of the Warriors’ experience, they were the ones who came undone and started wilting under pressure. Green lost his cool and kept taking awful fouls. Curry left Danny Green wide open in the corner. The team as a whole shot 14-of-21 from the free-throw line and committed 17 turnovers. Meanwhile, the Raptors stayed locked in from start to finish, and didn’t say a mumbling word after the game. They’re not getting ahead of themselves one bit — their only focus is to win it all on Monday.

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