The Toronto Ra-… Huskies welcomed their NBA kryptonite to town — the Chicago Bulls. Recent history has been cruel to Toronto, losing their last 11 (yes, eleven!) games to Chicago. From the lowest of lows to the highest of highs, this 48 53-minute war was undoubtedly in contention for game of the year.
When Raptors fans think Bulls, some sort of supernatural jinx comes to mind that has haunted Toronto for years on end.
They’re not wrong.
The Chicago Bulls have Toronto’s number. Not like 416 number, but rather 11 — 11 straight wins. Superhuman performances from Derrick Rose to Aaron Brooks to Doug McDermott (or McBuckets to us Raptor fans), Toronto has had their fair share of Chicago-style nightmares.
Enter, Rajon Rondo.
Old habits die hard
In typical fashion, Toronto began this game looking somewhat competitive in the 1st frame. That was until all things completely derailed early in the 2nd. Toronto’s bench lineup of Wright-Powell-Tucker-Patterson-Poeltl was put to shame by the Bulls’ bench. The team effort on display was lethargic with the bench collectively taking a seat amidst an ugly 49-33 deficit, mid-2nd quarter.
Afterwards, the starters seized back some of the lead but defense was downright despicable (see: Rajon Rondo). With DeMar DeRozan hitting a buzzer-beating, 35-foot prayer, the Bulls went into halftime with a 59-54 lead. Rondo led the way for Chicago with 18 points on 7/8 shooting.
The Bulls continued playing well, holding a 10+ point lead for the vast majority of the 3rd quarter.
Toronto Raptors broadcaster, Jack Armstrong put it perfectly:
"“Toronto can continue going back and forth all game until they decide to make stops defensively. Until then, they won’t win this game”"
Throwing hands
No seriously, an actual fight.
It all started with a very subtle elbow from Serge Ibaka after being brushed past by Robin Lopez.
Lopez must have thought Ibaka was a mascot with the way he responded, aggressively slapping the ball out of Ibaka’s hands. A scuffle ensued with Lopez eventually throwing and missing a punch and Ibaka countering with a grazing shot to the head of Lopez.
https://twitter.com/World_Wide_Wob/status/844350781553721345
After being separated, Raptors assistant coach Jamaal Magloire got into a shouting match with Bulls big, Nikola Mirotic (terrible idea, Nikola). Each acquired technical fouls which offsetted. Ibaka and Lopez were both rightfully ejected and will be issued suspensions by the league office.
The NBA does not see these kind of things happen often — and for good reason. Scuffles are almost a daily occurrence in the NBA but rarely do we ever see punches thrown on an NBA court.
Comeback?
Toronto continued their horrific defensive display all the way through the 3rd and into the 4th. In habitual manner, the Bulls unleashed no-name warriors Paul Zipser and Joffrey Lauvergne. It worked, until the Raptors finally woke up.
A miraculous comeback brought the Raptors from a once-16 point deficit all the way to a tied 109-109 game. A few incredible shot-blocking sequences by Patrick Patterson and DeMar DeRozan sent a jolt of energy to the home crowd. P.J. Tucker led Toronto with hustle plays, rebounding and pure defensive mastery. His exceptional effort, literally rebounding everything in sight, was truly rubbing off on the rest of the team.
Eventually, DeRozan had the chance to win the game for Toronto but air-balled a 30 foot jump-shot at the buzzer.
Overtime.
Comeback.
Chicago and Toronto traded miss after miss on each possession until DeRozan had enough. He persistently attacked the basket, drawing what seemed like a zillion fouls.
Suddenly, Jimmy Butler made the game interesting with a heavily contested three. Nevertheless, DeRozan smartly chucked up a rainbow-three knowing the Bulls were out of time-outs.
Game, set, match.
The Raptors pulled off the phenomenal comeback led by DeRozan’s offense (42 points) and P.J. Tucker’s… everything else. Not to mention, Cory Joseph, Fred VanVleet and Patrick Patterson all chipped in when the team needed them most.
Keep in mind, the Toronto Raptors lead the NBA in wins this season when trailing by 10+ points (17 wins).
This team is relentless.
Rapture Nation, you certainly witnessed a playoff atmosphere and arguably the Raptors’ game of the year.
Toronto must build on this consistency. Now, they head to Florida for a Thursday night clash with the super-hot Miami Heat.
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