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© Reuters. NBA: Orlando Magic at Toronto Raptors
When the Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder go to the Toronto Raptors at Tampa, Fla., on Sunday evening, the Thunder will probably be enjoying the final crew they defeated earlier than occurring a nine-game shedding streak.
That 113-103 win by the host Thunder on March 31 concluded a 1-13 March for the Raptors. Since then, whereas the Thunder have achieved nothing however lose, the Raptors have received 5 of 9.
The Thunder do have one streak of their favor. They’ve received 5 straight highway video games in opposition to the Raptors. Toronto final received a house recreation in opposition to the Thunder on Nov. 4, 2014.
The Raptors’ 113-102 victory over the visiting Orlando Magic on Friday was achieved regardless of the absence of a number of key gamers.
Paul Watson Jr., beginning for the primary time in his NBA profession, took benefit of the chance to attain a career-best 30 factors, together with 20 within the third quarter. The Magic scored 19 in that quarter.
Yuta Watanabe additionally had a profession finest with 21 factors off the bench.
Watson missed 11 video games from March 26 to April 13 due to COVID-19 protocols that he stated included “three or 4. … actually powerful days.”
Absent for the Raptors on Friday have been Kyle Lowry (toe), OG Anunoby (knee swelling), Pascal Siakam (relaxation), Gary Trent Jr. (ankle) and Jalen Harris (hip).
The absences introduced out one of the best from those that performed.
“You’ll be able to see the way in which they’re enjoying arduous and collectively; you possibly can see the blokes on the bench,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse stated. “There is a actually good crew factor occurring right here proper now, and it’s enjoyable.”
One Raptors’ common starter who did play was Fred VanVleet (hip flexor), who had missed the earlier seven video games. He scored six factors. VanVleet was 0-for-6 on 3-pointers, ending his club-record run of 76 video games by which he made no less than one shot from past the arc.
The Raptors have used their twenty sixth completely different beginning lineup of the season, the second-most in franchise historical past. The inaugural Raptors used 28 lineups in 1995-96, and three different seasons there have been 25 used.
“It is just about a night-before-day-of-the-game (scenario),” Nurse stated. “Typically an hour earlier than the sport I do know who’s out there. “So it is who’s there. We will get them to play arduous and play the suitable means and guard, and next-action (offensive) basketball and all that stuff. That is it.”
The Thunder misplaced 110-104 to the host Detroit Pistons on Friday evening. Luguentz Dort led the Thunder with 26 factors — 12 within the fourth quarter.
“From begin to the place he’s now, simply to see all the expansion he is made, high quality achievements he has achieved, he breaks by each barrier,” stated Thunder ahead Darius Bazley, who had 19 factors and 7 rebounds. “He will get over any hurdle.”
“The stretch within the fourth when the sport was beginning to slip away from us, we sort of pumped it to him a bit bit, and he sort of stabilized issues for us,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault stated.
Dort leads NBA gamers in offensive fouls drawn with 43 this season, forward of Lowry, who has 36.
The Thunder have been with out Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (foot harm), Josh Corridor (knee), Mike Muscala (ankle) and Aleksej Pokusevski (arm) on Friday.
–Subject Stage Media
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