Summer League: Toronto Raptors vs. Miami Heat 73-109: Playoff hopes are over after a statement loss

Shooting struggles and turnovers plagued the Raptors, sending them to a consolation game

In the fourth game of Summer League, the Toronto Raptors matched up against a Miami Heat team who entered the game undefeated. For both, it was a must win game to have hopes for the Summer League playoffs. Unfortunately for Toronto, shooting struggles, turnovers, and a mediocre defence headlined the game, leading to a dominant victory for Miami.

The Heat saw significant contributions from NBA-experienced players Josh Christopher, who finished with 17/2/3, and Cole Swider, chipping in with 21/4/1. First round pick Kel’el Ware, who had a 17 point, 10 rebound double-double, also made his presence known, adding 2 assists, 4 steals, and a block, a complete game for him.

The Raptors’ own first round pick saw some shots of his own fall, finishing with 16 points, aided by Brandon Carlson, one of the two-way players, who also scored double digits, contributing 12. Minutes were shared between starters and the bench, given the massive deficit, but the team shot a combined 30.7% from the field, 28.2% from 3, and added 17 turnovers, numbers that spoke volumes, overshadowed only by the final score.

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The Miami Heat were locked in to start the game, with tough defence that made it challenging for the Raptors to score. Miami started the game on a 13-0 run, shooting 5-9 from the field. Paired with four early turnovers by the Raptors, everything went the Heat’s way. When the Raptors finally did make a basket, it came in the form of a corner 3-pointer by Jamison Battle. Miami continued to answer everything from the Raptors, with the score disparity continuing to balloon as the frame closed. Substitutions from the bench did alleviate the initial low intensity on the defensive end, but continued turnovers and abysmal shooting were the primary storylines of the first quarter. To get an idea of just how tough it was for the Raptors, consider that, by the end of the quarter, they had more turnovers (9) than points (7). They shot 17.6% from the field, and 11% from long range. As a result, it was no surprise they ended the quarter down 7-32.

The second frame presented many of the same struggles as the first, with the Heat maintaining a 30 or more point lead for much of the quarter. The Raps turned the ball over only 7 times in the quarter and managed to improve their shooting percentages slightly to 22.2% from the field and 20% from distance, but they were still not enough to overcome the stifling defence of Miami and their white-hot shooting. The quarter ended with the Raptors down 24-61, a challenging deficit to overcome heading into the locker room.

DJ Carton opened up scoring for the Raptors in the third quarter, and they managed to shore up their defence and keep up with the Heat’s scoring in the quarter. The entire bench got significant minutes, an opportunity that they took advantage of, as they carried the scoring for not only this quarter, but also much of the game. With about four minutes left, Shead made a closeout to a three-point shooter and made contact with their lower extremities, finding himself ejected. Battle made a pair of threes shortly after, leading to the highest scoring frame yet, but the Heat still managed to outscore them by a single point, ending the quarter with the Raptors down 49-87.

The fourth quarter saw lots of opportunity for the benches of both teams, with the result of the game already expected long before. Toronto did manage to outscore the Heat for the first time all game, ending the quarter scoring 2 points more than Miami. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to overcome them, leaving the Raptors down 109-73.

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Great Performances:

Ja’Kobe Walter has had some up and down shooting so far, but his effort hasn’t wavered. Despite being down by an enormous margin, his defence remained engaged throughout the game and he was still finding ways to earn the Raptors points. He cashed in a number of 3s, and late in the game started to carry some of the offensive load. He led the team in scoring, finishing with 16 points, adding a rebound and a block to his stats.

DJ Carton stood out in this matchup as well, partly for his effort on both ends of the floor, but also as the one of the only efficient shooters in this game. He’s quick and agile, and has shown variety in the looks he can take on the offensive end. He finished with 8 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals off the bench and looked engaged throughout the game.

Jamison Battle made a nice comeback from his last game, cashing in a trio of 3s and doing it efficiently. After struggling on Wednesday, it was nice to see him come back and shoot 75% from long range and add 2 rebounds and 2 assists along with it.

The not-so-great:

Shead has been phenomenal for most of summer league, but tonight he certainly struggled. In only 11 minutes of action, he was held scoreless, 0-4 from the field. He had 2 rebounds and 2 assists, but also had a turnover and 3 fouls, all of which were avoidable. The closeout that led to his ejection was also entirely avoidable, as well, which was disappointing since his defence could’ve been useful.

Javon Freeman-Liberty also struggled tonight, rather uncharacteristically. He’s had some great summer league games which we’ve grown to expect, especially with the experience he’s had. He shot 2-10 from the field tonight though, also struggling from distance. He ended the game with only 5 points.

This was a perfect opportunity for guys like Omari Moore, Dylan Disu, and Joseph Girard III to show what they had to offer. They all saw significant time, but combined, only contributed 7 points, each having their own struggles shooting and defensively. Summer League is such a significant opportunity for so many of these players, and it is unfortunate that they weren’t able to capitalize tonight.

Now that the slated games are over, the Raptors will wait to find out when they play on Sunday and who their opponent will be, as the last few games finish tonight. Already they surpassed their performance last year, but hopefully they’ll be able to come back from this game and leave Vegas with a final victory.