Nick Nurse has never shied away from the idea that some opponents offer a clearer window into the potential of your own team. But with all the Raptors' injuries, what or who was he supposed to measure against the MiamiHEAT? (michaelgrange)
So when Nurse is trying to decide between startingor Patrick McCaw he could be excused for not wanting to put too much weight on this meeting between two of the Eastern Conference’s top teams.
Miami played a basic 2-3 zone for most of the game – something you see in men’s league when everyone’s hungover – and the Raptors obliged by playing a basic high school offence in response: pitch the ball to the man at the foul line and let him score or pass to a baseline cutter if a second defender commits.
Passes went between teammates legs. There were multiple three-second violations, there were so many missed shots – and that’s just in the folder marked ‘Serge Ibaka.’ But that was the beauty of the Heat’s defensive approach – it required Raptors other than Lowry or VanVleet to score and make plays.
The Heat and the Raptors are two of the best stories in the NBA this season because they share so many similarities as teams that have exceeded low expectations.
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