Last August, the Toronto Raptors completed their first playoff series sweep in franchise history – and achieved a bit of NBA history along the way. To close out the four-game first-round set against the Brooklyn Nets (who won’t be such an easy out this postseason), the Raps got an NBA-record 100 points from their bench unit along the way to a 150-122 clincher.
Suffice to say, that likely won’t be happening again for Toronto any time soon.
The second unit hit the century mark with contributions from the likes of Norm Powell (29), Serge Ibaka (27), Terence Davis (14) and Matt Thomas (12). Of those four, Powell is now a starting five fixture, Ibaka is a Clipper, Davis has only started to resemble the player he was in his rookie year and Thomas is barely on the fringe of the rotation.
The Raptors’ current bench can’t hold a candle to reserve units from the past couple of seasons. A group that has mostly included DeAndre’ Bembry, Chris Boucher, recently demoted Aron Baynes, Yuta Watanabe and occasionally Malachi Flynn or Stanley Johnson has had its moments, but has struggled to provide positive minutes with any consistency.
the nets bring kevin durant off the bench. the raptors respond with yuta watanabe off the bench. heavyweight matchup.
— Yahoo Sports Canada (@YahooCASports) February 6, 2021
The Raptors’ bench has let them down
As a result, they’ve failed to offer much respite to a group of heavy minutes-logging starters, especially given the absence of Kyle Lowry.
Take Friday’s ugly 86-81 win over Minnesota, a victory that included an 8:23 stretch of the third quarter in which Toronto produced exactly one point. With the Raptors needing just a bit of bench production against the league’s worst team, the reserves failed to offer any kind of boost, scoring 17 points on 4-18 shooting (against 31 points on 12-30 shooting from the Timberwolves’ subs).
And not every game will come against Minnesota, either. Among Eastern playoff teams, Toronto’s depth could loom large as a glaring weakness. Let’s highlight how their second unit stacks up against those of other East contenders
Milwaukee Bucks
As is the case with many contenders, the Bucks had to find value in inexpensive depth pieces to offset the big contracts of star players like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday. Unlike the Raptors’ failure with Alex Len, Milwaukee is actually faring well with productive off-season signees Bobby Portis, Bryn Forbes and former Raptor D.J. Augustin.
The trio, making under $13 million combined, has joined Pat Connaughton to offer a second unit that leads the league in three-point shooting and looms near the top in offensive rebounding and plus/minus. For the Raptors, seeing an opposing bench with a rebounding option (Portis) and two capable ball-handlers (Forbes and Augustin) must elicit some envy.
Brooklyn Nets
Those who make fun of the Nets for lacking any real semblance of a bench are missing the point. Nets head coach Steve Nash will assuredly blend his lineup to incorporate one or more of Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving into the second unit. If you think you’ll be able to take over and rally back while Durant, Harden and Irving sit, it may not be that simple.
Nets 31, Lakers 24 after one. It's been a great pace of a game, and the Nets have answered the bell in the first quarter. They'll need to be sharp for 48 minutes, but Tyler Johnson and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot hitting 3s off the bench is a big help.
— Kristian Winfield (@Krisplashed) February 19, 2021
The other challenge against Brooklyn – at least come closer to playoff time – is the looming threat of the buyout guy. The Nets know that the prospect of playing alongside their starry trio will be enticing for many, so they will surely be one of the more appealing destinations for players who get their release from also-ran teams.
As constructed, Brooklyn’s bench is inferior to that of the Raptors, but an Andre Drummond, Wayne Ellington, or even Blake Griffin could go a long way towards changing that, even with Spencer Dinwiddie out.
Philadelphia 76ers
Interestingly enough, Philadelphia stands atop the East while boasting one of the league’s least productive benches. The group sits 28th in points and assists per game, as well as dead last in three-point percentage, with gunners Shake Milton and Furkan Korkmaz shooting in the low 30’s from deep.
Raptor killer Mike Scott has been in and out of the lineup, Tyrese Maxey has slowed after a strong start to his rookie campaign and Dwight Howard hasn’t provided much in backing up Joel Embiid.
In a recent two-game split between the teams, the Toronto Raptors’ bench outscored their Philly counterpart by a combined 65-39 score. While Sixers head coach Doc Rivers surely wants to keep Embiid and Ben Simmons fresh for the playoffs, he’s had little choice but to have them log heavy minutes most nights.
Embiid and Tobias Harris rank fourth in minutes per game at their respective positions, while Simmons ranks 10th among point guards.
Boston Celtics
The Celtics have typically prided themselves over the years on getting bench production from young, homegrown, under-the-radar talent. That was evident in last year’s Eastern Conference semifinals when Brad Wanamaker (okay, so the 30-year-old late bloomer wasn’t young per se), Robert Williams, and Grant Williams all had standout moments against the Raptors.
This year’s unit has both Williamses back, but has also gotten production from rookie Payton Pritchard and Semi Ojeleye, who had a 24-point outing against the Raptors a few weeks back.
Make no mistake, though – this is a unit deployed primarily for defensive purposes. Although Boston ranks ninth in the league in bench minutes, they sit 29th in points per game. Still, they’ve managed to maintain a positive plus/minus while sustaining the trust of head coach Brad Stevens thanks to an engaged, consistent defensive effort.
While the Raps reserves should have more firepower than their Boston counterparts, the Celts’ second unit has outscored them 98-60 in two head-to-head games this season – both Celtics wins.
The lack of any true elite benches at the top of the East offers hope for the Raptors that internal improvement and, perhaps, a buyout might help them level up with their rivals. Still, Nick Nurse’s constant lineup tinkering (just ask Johnson) suggests that the coach isn’t pleased with the contributions of his reserve unit.
When Fred VanVleet, who has shouldered a serious load with a team- and career-high 36.6 minutes per game, sends a shot across the bow by saying that the team’s small-ball lineup “better be” sustainable because they “don’t have a choice”, it represents a shot at Baynes but also at the second unit’s overall production.