Toronto Raptors: 3 takeaways from loss to Nets, including D’Angelo Russell’s big game

Brooklyn pulled off a stunner on Friday evening, upsetting the Toronto Raptors in overtime to end their 12-game losing skid against the team. Toronto shot poorly and was outhustled by Brooklyn. What else was at stake tonight?

The Toronto Raptors dropped their second game this week as they fell in the Barclays Center 106-105 to the Brooklyn Nets. This was Brooklyn’s first win over Toronto since April 3, 2015, when Deron Williams was still around. The Nets just wanted to win more.

Let’s look at their shared history while examining the main takeaways from this pivotal meeting between both franchises.

Streak Busters

It took the Nets 12 games, three seasons, and an extra period, but they finally beat the Raptors. Brooklyn outrebounded Toronto 60-41 with a quarter of their boards coming from their own end.

Toronto also shot poorly from outside hitting just 11-of-35 three-pointers (31.4 percent) and shooting just 39.3 percent overall. Kyle Lowry (1-of-8) and Serge Ibaka (2-of-7) combined to score just 11 points while Pascal Siakam also struggled to find the basket (6-of-15).

Brooklyn didn’t shoot much better, and they almost blew this one as they led the Raptors for most of the game including being up by 14 early on.

With this victory, Brooklyn also snapped their eight-game losing skid and with nine wins, they are now falling behind in the NBA Draft Lottery race.

D’Angelo of Death

There is a new Raptor killer growing in the form of D’Angelo Russell. The point guard torched Toronto for a team-high 29 points on 59 percent shooting while adding five rebounds and five assists. He was tied with Ed Davis for a team-best +11.

Russell picked up where he left off from his last two games against Toronto. He recorded a triple-double (18 points, 13 assists, 11 rebounds) in their last meeting and erupted for 32 points with seven three-pointers when he first faced the team in Brooklyn last March.

Speaking of Davis, the former Raptor had a game-high 15 rebounds in just 20 minutes of action. His energy on the defensive end kept Brooklyn sharp while Russell carried much of the offence.

Russell is quietly averaging his best season recording 18.4 points on 41.8 percent shooting, both career-highs. It hasn’t translated to wins for Brooklyn, but he is putting up numbers much to the delight of fantasy owners.

Kawhi Keeps Scoring Amidst Mixed Results

It wouldn’t have come down to a final possession if Kawhi Leonard didn’t take it upon himself to carry the team offensively. Yet again, Leonard continues to build on his MVP case by dropping his fourth 30-point performance in five games.

Leonard scored a game-high 32 points while hitting five threes and adding four assists and four steals. He is now averaging 33.2 points in his last five games.

Toronto is 3-2 during this span with both their losses coming by single digits. Leonard had the ball in his hands during the final play but elected to pass. He has been involved during critical possessions late in games but has yet to close out a game.

A tasty rematch with the second-place Milwaukee Bucks is what’s next for Toronto, tomorrow evening at 6:00 PM ET.