The Toronto Raptors hung around in the first half, but Luka Doncic decided he wanted a birthday triple-double, and that’s what he got.
With three straight wins on the record and a four-game home stand ahead of them, the Toronto Raptors were looking for a dub tonight against Dallas Mavericks. The Mavs, with birthday boy Luka Doncic (who turned 25 today!), came into Toronto after losing a rough one last night in Cleveland.
The Raptors luckily had Jakob Poeltl back after he missed most of Monday’s game against Indiana after lightly spraining his ankle. His absence against the Pacers was merely precautionary, and he felt good enough tonight to play.
The only injury on Toronto’s side was Chris Boucher out with an illness. The Mavericks had no injured players.
The Raptors played pretty well in a high scoring first quarter. PJ Washington went off for the Mavericks, scoring 13 points and leading Dallas to start. The Raptors starting lineup was great and Gradey Dick got first quarter minutes.
He has somewhat taken over the role Gary Trent Jr. had in the rotation prior to him re-entering the starting lineup. He comes in as sort of the first wave of relief at the end of the first quarter.
RJ Barrett led the Raptors in the first quarter with seven points but went back to the locker room near the end. The Raptors trailed by two, 36-34, after one.
The second quarter saw some great shooting and offence by the Raptors. They kept up with the Mavericks, even leading midway through the quarter. It was a full team effort, with all but one of the Raptors who stepped onto the floor getting on the board.
Immanuel Quickley was the first Raptor to reach double digits — he scored three quick buckets from distance to get to 14 points in the half. Barrett had 13 points and Barnes had 11 by halftime.
The Raptors were also putting more pressure on defence. They held Luka Doncic to 14 points in the first half — well below what he is capable of. The birthday boy shot 4-12 from the field in the first half.
Raptors playing great defence already this game, holding Luka to 4-12 from the field and 14 points in the first half. Though he’s gotten to the line a bit, The Raptors are doing well to pressure him into tough looks.
— Raptors HQ (@RaptorsHQ) February 29, 2024
Toronto was up 67-66 over Dallas at halftime.
The third quarter started off great, but Luka eventually remembered who he was, and began to go off. Hardaway JR and Gafford also entered the double digit scoring club, and the Mavericks were off to the races. The got up by 10+ as the third quarter dwindled down.
That lead persisted throughout the fourth quarter as the Mavericks took over. Both Doncic and Irving were up to their usual antics, and had 25+ each with about half of the fourth quarter still to go.
In the end, it was the Dallas Mavericks who came out on top, winning 136-125 over Toronto. Happy Birthday to Luka indeed.
Luka had 30 points, 11 rebounds, and 16 assists on his 25th birthday, not too bad. Kyrie Irving scored 29 points on the night, and PJ Washington had 23 total for the Mavericks. In total, the Mavericks had five players in double digit scoring and were a +11 on the night.
Though the Raptors lost, and the pizza streak is over, there were a few positive notes to this game.
Immanuel Quickley played incredibly, scoring a team high 28 points on 5-11 shooting form three. His shooting ability from distance is just what the Raptors were missing before trading for him, and his craftiness in the paint is serving him and the team well. He is very fun to watch.
RJ Barrett also scored 26 points on the night, and mentioned after the game he felt more comfortable now after two months of being with this team.
Scottie Barnes had 19 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists on the night, along with three steals and one block.
The signs of a developing team are all there as we enter the final full month of the NBA season. There are obviously good nights and bad nights, but tonight showed that this young team could hang around with some of the best in the business — even just for one half.
There is not much expectation of this team in terms of post-season hopes, but the development and progress we are seeing is promising.
The Raptors will have one day off before welcoming the Golden State Warriors to town on Friday night.