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Searching for meaning in a Raptors-Hornets game in March

Alexandra Williams
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Searching for meaning in a Raptors-Hornets game in March

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TORONTO — Your loyal scribe does not need much convincing that everything is pointless and we’re all just wading through this existence, desperately ascribing meaning to passing objects. I do not recommend this outlook, but it has proven a stubborn albatross.

Charlotte Hornets coach Steve Clifford proselytized about the importance of playing to win every last game before his team’s contest against the Toronto Raptors on Sunday night. Clifford pointed out that most players on teams out of the playoff picture, which accurately describes the two teams, are playing to earn a landing spot next year, or at least in summer league. That is demonstrably true. Also, Clifford said good organizations have to try to win, if only so they can have a proper context to evaluate their players. Ignoring the fact that Clifford coaches the Hornets, winners of three total playoff games since returning to the league as the Bobcats in 2004-05, I fundamentally agree with that, too. It is not the job of the players or coaches to get the front office the draft pick they would prefer.

I don’t want to talk about tanking, either, although it is especially interesting in the Raptors’ case, given their pick is top-six protected, and they have the seventh-worst record. It is just that Scottie Barnes has a broken bone in his hand, and per Raptors head coach Darko Rajaković, they will consider all options, including season-ending surgery. It makes no sense to rush him back, but at least the Raptors could look for evidence of chemistry within a team setting beforehand. Barnes is so central to what the Raptors do that it becomes very difficult to say what, if anything, has much long-term meaning for them for the remainder of the season if he is done.

“It doesn’t matter how they perform in a single game,” said Rajaković, sending me spiralling inward. “We’ve got to give them an opportunity to bounce back from a bad performance or to learn from it — or if they play well, to take it to another level. It has to be a lot of patience over here with them. … Everybody’s going to have to do a little bit more. You were a secondary defender. Now you have to guard some players who are a little bit upscale (beyond) their level.”

That is primarily true for young players. For the veterans — well, get ready for the word “professionalism” to be thrown around like tennis balls at a dog park. Let’s take a note, then, and try to find meaning in the Raptors’ 111-106 win. I look inside the gaping maw of nothingness and say, “Not today, Sartre!” It’s running diary time.

Pregame

With Bruce Brown out of the lineup with a knee injury, Ochai Agbaji started in place of Barnes. I get it, as Agbaji is one of the better perimeter defenders on the team, but it also means the Raptors are starting extremely small. They play against the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday, which means potentially facing a front line of Jonas Valanciunas, Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson. I’ve got the over/under set at the Pelicans favoured by 9.5 rebounds, and 3.5 offensive rebounds.

First quarter

11:02: Agbaji has got the Raptors’ offence down, apparently. The team’s first two buckets come on off-ball cuts, getting layups off passes from Jakob Poeltl. The Hornets, as it happens, are 29th in the league in defence and are playing without both of their centres, Mark Williams and Nick Richards.

6:23: RJ Barrett will likely be the team’s usage leader without Barnes. He is being treated as the Barnes replacement, if you will, as the first substitute out of the game, likely to come back in before the first quarter ends to help bench-heavy lineups. He isn’t forcing it, though, taking his first shot of the evening on a layup in transition. Did you know he came into the game with a 61.4 true shooting percentage as a Raptor despite shooting just 60 percent from the free-throw line and attempting just 3.8 3-pointers per game? That is hard to do, and impressive.

2:42: So, about that Hornets defence: woof.

Offensively, I think it is important the Raptors don’t give any one player too much to do. It is important to keep them in fairly similar contexts as they would be in with Barnes. This is an opportunity for Immanuel Quickley to operate out of the pick-and-roll more often, though. He read Poeltl’s roll, or lack thereof, a moment earlier.

“That was part of our conversation that I had with both Quickley and RJ before the game: ‘Don’t think that you gotta do more now when Scottie is (not out) there. That you gotta take more shots necessarily,’” Rajaković said. “‘You guys are both great players. You’re gonna get your shots in the game, just allow it to come naturally and make sure that we have good ball movement and they’re playing together.’”

1:50: Turnover as a handler in the pick-and-roll, turnover along the baseline for Barrett with the second unit. Life as the primary option is not easy in the NBA, even in this setting.

Second quarter

8:15: Gradey Dick finds his way to offensive rebounds and loose balls more often than you would think.

7:08: As I said, Agbaji knows how to move off the ball.

4:28: If he doesn’t get what he wants in free agency this year, Gary Trent Jr. should look at his defence. Moments earlier, his gambling for a steal didn’t hurt the Raptors. This time, he takes himself completely out of the play, and Bryce McGowens gets a dunk. Causing havoc is Trent’s best shot at playing positive defence, but he has trouble striking the right balance.

23.0: As far as sound cues after a basket go, the “meep, meep” from the roadrunner for Quickley is pretty good, especially after he goes coast to coast.

Third quarter

9:16: You never know which way Agbaji’s shot is going to go, but this game is early evidence that he can perhaps carve out a role as an energy guy off the bench. He had an awesome offensive rebound in traffic. It’s not ideal that he’s taken the most field goals of anybody on the team at this point — 14, five more than Quickley, who is next — but expecting the offence to run smoothly is unwise.

“He crashes every time, which our team loves and needs,” Quickley said of Agbaji’s rebounding.

6:20: With Poeltl done for the night with a dislocated pinky, Jontay Porter, on a two-way contract, gets minutes behind Kelly Olynyk. The man knows how to read the game offensively. I was interested to see if Chris Boucher would get those minutes, given Porter had played just 21 minutes since the trade deadline, but Rajaković went with the younger option. I’m not against it, but I would like to note that Boucher has a plus-4.7 net rating (per 100 possessions) in 248 minutes since New Year’s Day. The Raptors were minus-8.0 in the other 1,106 minutes before Sunday’s game. What if correlation does equal causation?

2:23: When acquired at the deadline from Utah, Olynyk said Agbaji can jump as high while running backward as many players can when running forward. Good observation.

Fourth quarter

11:37: I harped on the bad in Barrett’s playmaking earlier, so here’s some good: nothing forced, just two consecutive strong takes and in-control decisions on the baseline. Barrett has been consistently turnover-prone on the baseline, so that is encouraging. He had five assists and five turnovers, which felt right.

5:40: Media seats are located straight up the first bowl from behind the Raptors bench, which meant I had a perfect view of this corner 3 from Dick. And let me assure you: That is a lovely looking shot he has.

2:46: Assuming he gets some more crunch time reps, Quickley has to be able to read the situation a little better. He drew enough contact on a late possession that he should have gotten a foul call — and maybe even two free throws — if he had put up a shot. Instead, he dished it out, and Olynyk missed a 3. Any points this Raptors team can muster are important. He figured that out a few moments later.

7.3: As I said, Trent should gamble on defence more often.

End of game

Look: This was a game between the Raptors and Hornets. However, if they can get their two main offensive players, Quickley and Barrett, playing efficiently (45 points on 29 field goal attempts between them) and two supporting players popping (Dick with 11 points and Agbaji with 13) on most nights for the rest of this year, the Raptors will take it.

With that, we have kept the gnawing sense of meaninglessness at bay. Another victory.

(Photo of Immanuel Quickley: Dan Hamilton / USA Today)



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