Raptors finally erase playoff pain
The Toronto Raptors have been trying to get past the first round of the playoffs for the past three seasons under head coach Dwane Casey. On Sunday night, they finally did it.
Toronto was able to hold on after almost blowing a 16-point lead late in the fourth quarter, beating the Indiana Pacers 89-84 at the Air Canada Centre in Game 7 of their NBA Eastern Conference Quarterfinal. The Raptors shouldn’t have had to work this hard to vanquish the seventh-seeded Pacers, but at this point that blemish is academic.
All that matters to the Great White North is that Toronto is moving into the second round for the first time since the Vince Carter era, something hard to believe but all too true.
DeMar DeRozan scored 30 points but played poorly, shooting 10-of-32 from the field albeit going 9-for-9 at the free throw line. DeRozan was helped out by rookie Norman Powell, a reserve guard who hit all but one of his six field goal attempts, scoring a key 13 points.
Indiana could not get enough going around Paul George, which has been the story of its season. George scored 26 points in the tilt but was let down by the talented Myles Turner, who shot 2-of-11 from the floor for a meager four points. Turner, only 20 years old, will have better days ahead. George Hill and Monta Ellis showed up, scoring 19 and 15 points respectively, but it was not enough to overcome Indiana’s appalling 14 points off the bench.
However, this night is about the Raptors, who finally gave their long-suffering fans something to smile about. Toronto now goes on to face the third-seeded Miami Heat, a much tougher foe which also won on Sunday in its own Game 7, crushing the Charlotte Hornets.
The Raptors will need a much better series out of point guard Kyle Lowry to beat Miami, which is led by one of the more talented rosters in basketball. The Heat can beat you inside and out with Dwyane Wade and Goran Dragic in the backcourt while Hassan Whiteside controls the paint.
For now, the Raptors deserve a nice of celebration. Toronto can exhale, not having to worry about the naysayers talking about another first-round collapse. It won’t be another long summer for the Raptors, who would have been crushed in the local and national papers after winning 56 games in the regular season.
Toronto has a chance to reach the conference finals with a win over Miami, a team that will undoubtedly be favored despite being the lower seed. This is a chance for the Raptors to create a new narrative.
Regardless of what happens in the second round, at least Toronto is finally here.
