Here are 10 takeaways from the Toronto Raptors' 127-115 win over the Denver Nuggets:
One -- This win rivals their triple-overtime victory against Miami. This was supposed to be a scheduled loss just based on the circumstances. The Raptors had no point guards as Fred VanVleet was rested while Malachi Flynn remains out, their primary defender against Nikola Jokic in OG Anunoby is hurt, and the team is coming in on a back-to-back playing in altitude.
To take this result in the fashion that they did, outscoring Denver 34-16 in the fourth quarter for the knockout blow, shows the heart and character of this group. They could have easily thrown in the towel. Instead, the Raptors have pushed themselves to one game back of the coveted sixth seed.
Two -- The Raptors overran the Nuggets in the fourth quarter. Surprisingly, it was a bench lineup consisting of Scottie Barnes, Dalano Banton, Thaddeus Young, Chris Boucher, and Khem Birch that delivered this win. On paper, the lineup makes no sense as there is no traditional guard, no floor spacer and it's asking a veteran in Young to cover on the perimeter. But the Raptors were imposing their will on the game and played to their strengths.
That lineup snagged six offensive rebounds and forced six turnovers, resulting in 10 additional shot attempts in the quarter as compared to the Nuggets. That group was able to play off their defence and finish in transition. They got downhill when needed, crashed the glass for second chance points, and with all that in their favour, the two threes from Barnes at the start of the fourth, and with Barnes setting up Boucher at the end, those were the straws that broke the Nuggets' back.
Three -- Nick Nurse is fearless. Not only did he trust that group to start the fourth, but he stuck with it as Denver went up eight points, and he rode with the hot hand even after the Nuggets called timeout and got Jokic back into the game. There was a strategy element, as Nurse aligned his players in a 1-3-1 zone, which stacked the paint with multiple bodies that stemmed the tide of layups that sustained Denver in the first three quarters.
Nurse also saw that the Nuggets had three small guards on the floor in the fourth, along with a slow-footed centre in DeMarcus Cousins who can't track back. The Raptors pressed their size advantage with Barnes, Young and Banton driving into the defence, while Boucher and Birch were relentless on the glass. Nurse only brought in Pascal Siakam with three minutes left even though he had 33 points through three quarters, but it was absolutely the right call. Nurse didn't just cash out his chips after winning a hand, he pushed all-in at the right time and doubled up.
Four -- Barnes was a superstar from start to finish. He opened this game with a monstrous two-handed dunk after faking out the entire Nuggets defence, then threw a 70-foot pitch-ahead feed right to Siakam in the post. Barnes carried the scoring throughout as the de facto point guard, and he led the bench unit in the fourth.
Barnes nailed a triple to open the fourth, called for a clear-out and knocked Jeff Green to the ground before converting the driving layup. He then got his own miss and set up Boucher in the corner, took a charge from Jokic who ran him over out of frustration and waved off Siakam for a driving layup at the end that forced the Nuggets to empty the bench. Barnes had 25 points, eight rebounds, and 10 assists, which is his best game as a rookie, but a few seasons from now this will just be normal. He just went against the reigning MVP, in his building, and outplayed him.
Five -- Siakam carried the Raptors through three quarters. He drilled two threes right away to establish the outside threat, but primarily dominated with his ability to drive. Siakam was relentless in getting to the basket, knowing that the Nuggets had nobody who could match him for size and quickness since Aaron Gordon was out, and he took full advantage.
The Nuggets also don't offer any shot blocking at centre between Jokic and Cousins, which meant that Siakam could get to the rim at will. And in the moments where the Nuggets did block his path with a help defender, Siakam made the right reads on kick-out passes and his teammates were confident on threes.
Consider this: The Raptors didn't have a traditional point guard available, but the duo of Siakam and Barnes combined for 17 assists with just two turnovers.
Six -- Boucher dominated the game in his role. For all the talk of the Raptors not having a traditional big -- and Boucher is unconventional no matter how you try to label him -- what gets lost are the advantages that come with it. Boucher's activity was so high that he single-handedly matched the Nuggets in offensive rebounds with nine, while also tacking on four blocks.
Boucher just kept getting around the Nuggets on defence. Whether it was flashing to the elbows for midrange jumpers to beat the zone, or cuts for easy dunks, the rest was just pure hustle. The cherry on top was his late three to put the Raptors up by 10 with two minutes left. Boucher showed no hesitation and paid no mind to potentially trying to burn the clock, and was only focused on hammering the nail on the coffin.
Seven -- Birch was the unsung hero of the night. He admitted in the post-game press conference after beating Phoenix that his ailing knee requires constant treatment, and that his limited performances have led to negative feedback from the fanbase. Yet he keeps playing through it and there is a certain bravery to what he is doing both physically and mentally.
He looked laboured on an especially slow closeout to end the third quarter as Denver nailed a three but Birch was as spry as he had been all year in the fourth. He secured five rebounds including three on the offensive end, timing his cut to capitalize on a dump-off pass from Banton, while also skying for an alley-oop finish despite the pass being overthrown. This came in a game where Birch was demoted to the second unit mere hours after coming up with two clutch stops, but there was not a word of complaint, nor any dip in determination. Birch's only goal is to win, and even with a bad knee and a string of bad beats, he keeps pushing on.
Eight -- Young showed exactly why he was brought in at the deadline. He held the whole group together in the fourth quarter. He drove in for a pair of go-ahead floaters, and beat everyone down the floor for a layup after playing 11 minutes straight. In between those moments, Young brought the ball up on two fast breaks to set up another pair of baskets. He saved what should have been a dunk for Cousins with a strip under the basket and wrestled the ball away from Will Barton on a baseline drive late in the fourth.
Young's fit with the Raptors as a positionally fluid forward that plays both ends of the floor was clear right from the time of the deal, but it's the little heads up plays that have stood out. He is in the right spots at all the right times.
Nine -- Precious Achiuwa had a career-high four threes. Achiuwa was always in for a battle having to guard against the much bigger Jokic, who put him in foul trouble and had his way in the post. But he gave it right back, punishing Jokic for leaving him open at the line by drilling four triples. Achiuwa showed no hesitation in letting it fly. He was so effective that he was able to pump fake a Nuggets defender into leaving their feet on a closeout, before driving it into the defence to finish the and-one. Achiuwa is already a smothering defender and an elite athlete, but if he can hit threes with this type of consistency, he will be a starter in this league for a long time.
Ten -- Armoni Brooks was very solid in his spot start. Brooks joined the Raptors on a 10-day deal this week given the injuries to VanVleet and Flynn and Nurse made the surprise choice to start him despite his limited experience. Brooks only took threes on offence, which is to be expected given that over 85 percent of his shot attempts in three seasons have been from deep. But his activity on defence was a pleasant surprise. For a small guard, Brooks showed good athleticism in blocking Barton on a jumper, collecting a deflection on a drive for a steal, while also surprising Jokic with a double team from the blind side to spark another fast break.
