The Toronto Raptors were dealt a difficult hand of cards.
They played the Philadelphia 76ers in the City of Brotherly Love, a game that stretched well past the normal 140 realtime minutes that a game normally takes because of an incredible amount of fouling (99 total fouls in the game). The Raptors pulled out the win, but it was an already-tired team that immediately boarded a plane and flew to Minnesota to face a Western Conference Finals team.
What's more, the Timberwolves had their entire rotation available, while the Raptors were playing without Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Bruce Brown and Kelly Olynyk. Simply avoiding a bloodbath was a moral victory for this team, if those mean anything to you.
The Raptors achieved that much, hanging tough with Minnesota throughout the contest. Anthony Edwards and Julius Randle each scored 24 points, and Rudy Gobert had 15 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks, but despite falling behind by as many as 22 points in the second half, the Raptors battled back and were within seven points late before the Wolves shut the door.
Who played well for Toronto, and who failed to deliver what was needed for an improbable victory? Let's look at 2 Heroes and 3 Zeroes from Saturday's game.
Davion Mitchell was a Zero
We start with the literal zero that Davion Mitchell put up in the scoring column, shooting 0-for-5 from the field. The confidence he had shooting the basketball on Friday night was gone, and in its place was a tentative player scared out of the paint by Rudy Gobert and unwilling to shoot from deep against the length of Minnesota.
Somewhat to his credit, Mitchell did pivot to playmaking and racked up eight assists in high 29 minutes, but most of those were simple passes to teammates who shot or drove; he wasn't generating high-percentage looks for teammates. He was a -12 on the night, compared to Jamal Shead's -1 in his 19 minutes. Mitchell wasn't terrible, but the Raptors could have really used some scoring aggression.
Gradey Dick was a Hero
The player who did have scoring aggression was second-year wing Gradey Dick, who has come into the season willing to take a much wider array of scoring possessions. Not merely a perimeter shooter, Gradey Dick showed off a deep bag of moves in the paint, driving into traffic for pull-up jumpers or high-arcing floaters, often over the outstretched arm of Rudy Gobert.
Gradey scored a career-high 25 points on 9-for-16 shooting from the field, including four 3-pointers. The Raptors, in part spurred by the absences of Quickley and Barrett, repeatedly ran plays for Dick to catch the ball on the move or with a screen to spring him for an open 3-point shot. He is not an elite finisher inside at this point in his career, but he is willing to attack the rim and is growing into a more versatile offensive player.
Scottie Barnes was a Zero
The Toronto Raptors needed Gradey Dick's scoring because Scottie Barnes was overmatched going against the size of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Whether it was Julius Randle or Jaden McDaniels guarding him, in the halfcourt Barnes was largely unable to get separation, and even when he did put his head down and drive inside Rudy Gobert was waiting there. When Barnes tried to then hit Jakob Poeltl inside, the ball was as likely to be deflected or stolen as it was to reach its target.
Barnes played 37 minutes and was on the ball for a lot of it, so he racked up counting stats: eighth rebounds, six assists and 20 points, but it took him 19 shots to get there. One way to combat the lack of space inside would have been to hit 3-pointers, but Barnes was 1-for-4 from deep. He managed to accrue a whopping six turnovers trying to force things against the Wolves' waiting defenders.
It certainly wasn't the stinker of the opener, but Barnes didn't have any solutions to take down the Wolves other than "transition" and the Raptors didn't spark enough of those in this game to make a difference.
Ochai Agbaji was a Hero
Perhaps the most unexpected development of this early season has been the readiness of Ochai Agbaji to start games and make a positive difference. After bouncing around the league as a ho-hum defender and ice-cold shooter, Agbaji was been something of a lockdown wing for the Raptors. He was elite in the win over the 76ers and very solid on Saturday night, even in a loss.
On offense Agbaji again came through, shooting 8-for-12 from the field and scoring 19 points, including 3-for-5 from 3-point range. He had a pair of steals and a pair of assists, both positives for him, and he generally looks confident out on the court. Is he merely experiencing a mini hot streak and will he fade into the depths of the rotation once everyone is healthy? Perhaps, but for now he looks like a legitimate NBA wing, and that's not something anyone would have said after watching him close the season in Toronto last season.
Jonathan Mogbo was a Zero
A common denominator runs through the Raptors' first two losses: they have few answers against teams with lots of size and length. Against the short-handed Philadelphia 76ers, who didn't play a backup center and who started Kyle Lowry and Tyrese Maxey in the backcourt, the Raptors thrived. Against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Minnesota Timberwolves, the Raptors were strangled.
The perfect illustration of this was the impact of Jonathan Mogbo against the Wolves. He was the breakout star of the 76ers win, playing smallball center and flying around the court making plays on offense and defense. Against the much larger Timberwolves he had no answers, shooting just 1-for-3 from the field and snaring just three rebounds and zero blocks. He did have two steals, but his energy was lower and his undersized frame more pronounced against a matchup he isn't yet equipped to overcome.
The Raptors get a day off to breathe and then host the Denver Nuggets on Monday night.