Welcome to the 10 things recap by theScore features writer William Lou, which serves to highlight emerging trends from a Raptors perspective.
- Ideal: This is everything you want from a throwaway game. The Raptors got an extra rest day for Kyle Lowry, Serge Ibaka, and Danny Green, while also giving their younger players a chance to shine in extended minutes, and still got the easy win.
MVP: Kawhi Leonard matched a season high in scoring with 37 points on just 16 shot attempts. He literally got whatever he wanted against the Cavaliers' helpless defenders and hardly broke a sweat. The closest comparable to Leonard's performance would be how LeBron James thoroughly dismantled the Raptors in the playoffs in recent years.
Assertive: OG Anunoby was impressive from the jump. He drilled a turnaround jumper out of the post, hit three triples, had a tip-in, and topped it off by putting Matthew Dellavedova in the spin cycle before dunking with two hands - all in the first quarter. He tied a career high with 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting to break out of his recent shooting slump.
Missed: This was shades of the 2016-17 version of Norman Powell. He was steady off the pick-and-roll, finished through contact at the rim, was confident on the mid-range pullup, and was a force in transition. Powell even avoided charging into a waiting defender in favor of setting up a corner three in the fourth. He played within himself and under control, and that's exactly what the Raptors need from Powell on a nightly basis.
Replacement: Nick Nurse is doing his best to boost C.J. Miles' confidence by dialing up pin-down plays to get him wide-open looks, but it's just not working. Miles is a liability in every aspect of the game, and he will lose the majority of his minutes to Powell at this rate. It's actively depressing to watch Miles struggle night after night.
Moves: However, the Raptors will need to add a knockdown shooter if Miles continues to struggle. Powell is an upgrade in terms of defense and his ability to drive, but the lack of 3-point shooting is a problem on most nights. Toronto only hit 9-of-31 from deep.
Versatile: Pascal Siakam spent another successful shift as a small-ball center. He'll shift back to power forward once Ibaka and Valanciunas return to the lineup, but it's a nice look to have in the back pocket.
Creative: Nurse continues to catch teams by surprise with tiny bursts of his zone defense. The Cavaliers turned it over and settled for two late-clock bailout shots before calling a timeout to sort themselves out. Nurse cleverly shelved the zone coverage after the timeout to nix the ensuing play, just as he did against the Pacers on Wednesday.
Active: Lorenzo Brown continues to make an impact on defense. He can't create anything close to efficient offense at an NBA-level, but his 6-foot-6 frame makes him a plus-defender at the point guard position, and almost all of his positive moments this season have come as a result of his hustle.
Unfortunate: It's too bad that the Cavaliers are so inept because it completely undercuts the satisfaction of beating the team that embarrassed the Raptors in three straight seasons.
