Toronto Raptors: Top moments from 2019-2020 regular season No. 5-1
1. Comeback for the ages
A lazy Sunday used to be a cherished time. Now, many of us have grown a little to accustomed to the feeling.
On December 22, 2019, the Raptors were having a real lazy Sunday. Possibly affected by the bizarre 3:30 p.m. tip-off time, the Raptors, who once led by ten, found themselves stuck 30 with two minutes left in the third.
The Mavs, in their airbrushed, ’90s-inspired uniforms, could not miss. Even without Luka Doncic, Dallas was moving the ball and getting everybody involved. Every single one of their starters finished with double figures.
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The Raptors’ starters, you ask? Well, let’s just say they weren’t having the best night. Forced into an already tight rotation due to injuries to Pascal Siakam, Norman Powell and Marc Gasol, the Raptors only got a combined 20 points from Patrick McCaw, OG Anunoby and Serge Ibaka.
But here in lies the beauty of the Raptors’ system. On any given night, somebody is liable to step up. On this night, it was Chris Boucher and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson. With the lead ballooning and Nick Nurse literally out of effective options, he gave Boucher and @chap on Instagram free reign.
The pair responded with 21 and 18, respectively. Terence Davis also put up nine off the bench. Malcolm Miller even got involved, playing 17 minutes without recording a point, but snatching three steals. Suddenly, the Raptors were back in it.
The one constant, in this game, and generally in Raptors lore, is Kyle Lowry. The only Raptor to play over 30 minutes on the night (he played 42), Lowry led the energetic but green crew of Boucher, Hollis-Jefferson, Davis and Miller on the largest comeback in franchise history, putting up 32 points and ten assists.
If you know me, you know that I love some good symbolism to go with my sports, and the basket that would give the Raptors the lead for good in this game was perfectly emblematic of the direction the organization is heading.
Down one, Lowry led the Raptors down the floor. Charging into the lane, Lowry drew both Tim Hardaway Jr. and Kristaps Porzingis towards him, before dishing to Chris Boucher, who emphatically slammed it home.
From the middle of the third quarter to the start of the fourth quarter, the Mavericks had a 97 percent chance or better of winning the game. In quintessential Raptors fashion, Toronto paired a great performance from their star with a hard hat and lunchpail work from the bench to steal the victory. Here’s to Orlando, Raptors fans. We The North.
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What did you think of our top five list? Was there one that should have made the list? What do you expect for the rest of the season? Let us know in the comments below.