The play of the Toronto Raptors bench is the deciding factor in the Eastern Conference Finals. When they’re rolling, Toronto looks unbeatable.
The Toronto Raptors have seen the effects their bench can have on a game, especially in the Eastern Conference Finals. In Game 4, the bench woke up and fueled the Raptors to a dominant win.
With the series tied at two games apiece, the play of the Raptors’ bench mob will be the key to winning the series. These first four games of the series have shown the good, the bad, and the ugly of the bench. If they can provide the same kind of offensive spark like they did in game 4, Toronto has the chance to get to the NBA Finals.
Bench Mob Resurgance
The bench of the Raptors has been inconsistent throughout the postseason. Their poor play has caused unnecessary stress on the starters, and put Nick Nurse in a tough situation.
In Game 4, the mob was awoken and flat out scorched the Milwaukee Bucks and their bench. The trio of Serge Ibaka, Norman Powell, and Fred VanVleet provided a scoring burst off the bench that allowed the Raptors to take control of the game early.
Powell was aggressive throughout the entire game as he took a game-high 18 shot attempts. He finished with 18 points and five rebounds. Even though his shooting percentage was just 33-percent for the game, Norm’s aggression on offense proved to be useful not only for him but his teammates.
Ibaka finished with a double-double, scoring 17 points and grabbing 13 boards. Four of those rebounds were offensive rebounds, which allowed the Raptors to score second-chance points and prevent the Bucks from getting out on the break. He provided great defensive effort as well for Toronto, making shots difficult for Bucks players, including Giannis Antetokounmpo, who tried to score inside.
Fred VanVleet finally broke out of his slump, providing 13 points off the bench along with six assists. He seems to have found the solution to his shooting woes, as he shot 5-6 from the floor, including a perfect 3-3 from three-point range.
Many have wondered if VanVleet should continue to get minutes due to his struggles, but he proved in Game 4 that he should continue to get those playoff minutes. Hopefully, this is a sign of greater things to come from FVV for the remainder of the playoffs.
The Toronto bench outscored the Milwaukee bench 48-21, and that proved to be the difference.
The offensive outburst seemed to give the Raptor bench some extra energy on defense as well, something the stats didn’t show. Powell and Serge started the game strong offensively and that led to them being more intense on the defensive side as well.
To put the performance of the bench in perspective, the Raptors bench scored 42 points through the first four games of the semi-finals series against the Philadelphia 76ers. They eclipsed that number in Game 4 alone. Also, the bench has averaged 31.6 points per game in the Eastern Conference Finals compared to a lackluster 16.9 in the semi-finals.
The Key is the Bench
If the Toronto Raptors want to come away as winners in this series, the play of the bench mob will be the key. In three of the first four games this series, the team that had the most bench points ended up winning the game.
Even though the playoff rotations are shorter, the reserves who get those minutes must play well if they want to help their team win. Nick Nurse has stuck with his eight-man rotation despite the criticism, and his perseverance might be starting to pay off.
With Kawhi Leonard not at 100 percent, the bench will be relied upon even more to provide scoring and defensive effort. Leonard has carried the Raptors to this point and it seems like that is beginning to wear on his body.
The reserves helped out a visibly tired and banged up Kawhi in Game 4, and with the playoffs only getting tougher, the bench should look to give Kawhi more assistance, no matter how well he plays.
With Milwaukee still owning home-court advantage, the Raptors will need to steal a game on the road if they intend to win this series.
The play of the bench has been drastically different on the road compared to playing at the Scotiabank Arena. The “others” will need to have a performance similar to game 4 in one of these two games on the road in order to give the Raptors a good shot a winning the series.
The bench will be just as important on the defensive end for the remainder of the series. The defense that Ibaka plays on Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks other big men have proven to be crucial at certain points in the game.
The mob stepped up their defensive energy in Game 4 and that same intensity should be the focus for them in Game 5. The Bucks are sure to come out swinging and looking to get their offense going after a sub par game 4 performance.
Battle of the Benches
Thanks to a much-needed boost from the Toronto Raptors bench mob, it is now best of three series in the Eastern Conference Finals. It has been the battle of the benches throughout the series, as the play of the bench has determined how both teams fared in the first four games of this series.
The Raptors reserves played outstanding in Game 4, along with some help from Kyle Lowry and Marc Gasol. Toronto has lived and died with their bench play, especially in this series.
The play of the bench mob is the key piece to the puzzle, and if they can continue to score and outplay Milwaukee’s bench (and starters even), they will end up being the reason why the Raptors come out of this series victorious.