Raptors step up to sting Hornets

SIAKAM LEADS WAY WITH VANVLEET, BARNES OUT

No Fred Vanvleet. No Scottie Barnes. No problem? Strange as that might seem, the Toronto Raptors set a season-high for points in a half without two of the team’s best players on Tuesday and cruised to a 125-113 victory over the Charlotte Hornets.

Pascal Siakam stepped up with one of the finest games of his career (24 points, 12 rebounds, nine assists), Gary Trent Jr. was on fire and scored 32 and OG Anunoby was the team’s third scorer with at least 20 points — 24 in all — against one of the league’s worst defensive groups.

Charlotte came in ranked 26th in defensive efficiency, but one figured they’d put on a better showing considering who the Raptors were without.

Starter and potential all-star Vanvleet was held out due to knee soreness, while rookie of the year candidate Barnes was a late scratch due to right wrist soreness. Charlotte was without Gordon Hayward, but still brought a formidable group north of the border, at least offensively speaking. Lamelo Ball had 25 points, Miles Bridges 22, but nearly 50 per cent shooting by the team wasn’t enough because of the leakage at the other end.

Toronto had lost five of seven games heading in and took a dismal 4-18 record into the game when Vanvleet has sat over the last two seasons.

“He usually has a leading role defensively, taking one of the highest scoring guards on the team. There are always a lot of things in the pick-and-roll that he can diffuse there. That’s one thing,” head coach Nick Nurse had said of what drops off minus Vanvleet.

“Certainly miss his perimeter shooting and just overall leadership, I’d imagine.”

Except, surprisingly, not in this one. The team flirted with 50 per cent three-point shooting, and didn’t really miss Barnes either.

It’s unclear if Vanvleet will be ready for Wednesday’s game in Chicago.

“I’m not really that sure. As we play all these games, everybody’s dinged up. He’s a little dinged up. They decided he wasn’t gonna go tonight but I think it’s kind of day to day.”

Vanvleet is second in the NBA in three-pointers made per game and deflections. He’s also 13th in assists.

GOOD COMPANY

Siakam is one of six players averaging at least 20 points this season, along with eight rebounds and four assists.

The others on the list won the last four NBA MVP awards (Giannis Antetokounmpo twice, Nikola Jokic and James Harden) or have finished second (Joel Embiid last season) or have been the betting favourite heading into a season (Luka Doncic).

That’s the kind of company you want to keep.

As quietly as just about anyone in the league, Siakam has turned in an ALL-NBA calibre year.

And when the Raptors have unlocked him as a primary ball-handler and creator things have really got, shall we say, spicy for the former all-star.

Siakam eclipsed 10 assists in a game for the second time in his career and again came a rebound shy of a triple-double.

BOUCHER IMPRESSING

Chris Boucher has gone from out of the rotation at times, to the most important Raptors reserve.

He’s been on a great run lately by trying to do less.

“I knew I was a better player than what I was showing, I wasn’t playing my best basketball and I was focused on the wrong thing. I think by watching film, doing meditation, freeing up your mind, the game comes a lot easier,” Boucher said earlier Tuesday.

“It helped me focus on the right things and also realizing there’s tough stretches in the season where you’re just not playing well and you feel nothing is going well ... Sometimes you get too hard on yourself, you need some people that knows you outside of basketball to make you realize you’re still doing the right things and things will come around and I think that really helped me out.”

Boucher believes he’s grown as a player more this year than any other “because I started out bad then I had to figure out my way and find ways to still be able to play basketball with a lot of, like six guys on this team that can actually score, and now becoming a defender.”

Nurse has liked what he’s seen as well.

“He was struggling this year. There’s no doubt about it. There were a lot of what I would consider below-his-potential performances,” said Nurse.

“I continue to tell him that I believe in him and I’m gonna keep giving him his chance. ‘I think you’ve already proven you can do what you can, but you won’t do anything if you don’t stay to your core, which is energy: run, rebound, block shots.’ It’s funny how we’re seeing this over the year, the guys who play better on defence play better on offence. The guys that bring energy in their role areas play better on offence as well,” Nurse said.