1/25/10
by: Scott
Permalink
 |
Kobe Bryant has won three Lakers games this season with buzzer beaters: Dec. 4th against Miami, Dec. 16th against Milwaukee and Jan. 1st against Sacramento. Last night, I was almost certain he was going to rack up his fourth when he received an in-bounds pass with just over a second to go, pivoted on the "N" in the "AIR CANADA CENTRE" logo and fired a 38-foot shot over Antoine Wright's outstretched hands. The shot ricocheted off the front of the rim, then the backboard, and then harmlessly onto the court. Game over. Raptors win. And I ran down my hallway hooting and clapping like someone who has to use plastic cutlery so he doesn't hurt himself.
The Raptors pulled off this upset in just about the only way they could have — they didn't get rattled by the Lakers' stifling defence that put the Raptors behind 14-7 at the 4:31 mark of the first quarter, they stuck around all game and never fell more than 10 points behind, they got a surprising call in their favour at a crucial moment of the game, and then Kobe reminded us that he's human after all and missed the potential dagger. They didn't play perfect — and you can't help but wonder if a healthy Kobe makes that last shot — but they played well enough to knock off the defending champions and that means something no matter how you look at it.
The call that went the Raptors' way is worth re-examining — not only because you typically don't expect the refs to make that call with 1.2 seconds left, but because of who was the beneficiary of the call. With the clock winding down, Hedo Turkoglu drove the lane and made contact with Pau Gasol as he passed to Jarrett Jack in the corner. Turkoglu sold the contact by sprawling across the baseline and the officials called the foul on Gasol, sending Turk to the line for the two free throws that put Toronto ahead by one.
While we could debate whether or not the foul should have been called, I think a more interesting question is: Would any other Raptor have received that call in their favour? We all know that players get calls in these situations based on their reputation, and Turkoglu has a rep as a "clutch player" and was in the NBA Finals last season. This seemed like a "reputation call" as much as anything else, and nobody else on this team has Turkoglu's reputation.
On the ensuing possession, Wright had the unenviable responsibility of guarding Kobe, and he did a solid job of contesting his shot without risking a foul. So here we have a situation where my two biggest punching bags this season — Turkoglu and Wright — played key roles in pulling off an improbably upset over the Lakers. Combine that with Andrea Bargnani's exceptional play — 22 points, eight rebounds, and excellent defence on Gasol and Andrew Bynum in the second half — and I'm more than happy to put away my grudges to celebrate this win.
Now that the Raptors have victories over the Cavs, Magic, Mavs and Lakers — who all have winning percentages in the NBA's top seven — it's starting to feel like we can say that "this team can play with anyone" for the first time in, well... pretty much ever. I need the Raptors to win their remaining game against the Celtics and at least one of their two remaining games against the Hawks to really feel confident this team can advance in the playoffs, but the embers of hope are glowing and threatening to ignite the kindling of optimism.
Unfortunately, here's where I do my parade-pissing routine that I'm all too good at. In order to even match their franchise-record 47-win total from 2006-07 and 2000-01, the Raptors will need to go 24-13 the rest of the way — not impossible, but pretty unlikely. And even if they do that, it almost certainly won't be enough to crack the top four in the East who will all likely finish with 50 or more wins. So whatever happens the rest of the season, we have to be prepared for the Raptors to play either Boston, Atlanta or Orlando without home court advantage. Not that you need reminding, but the Raptors are 1-8 against those teams this season.
But hey, a lot can happen between now and the playoffs, right? What I mean, of course, is that one or more of the key players on those teams could suffer an injury that keeps them out of the first round. It's not very sporting of me to wish for that to happen, but I'm a realist who thinks sportsmanship is overrated. Victory won't be any less sweet if the Raptors' opponent is shorthanded. 
|
