Raptors Snap Losing Streak On Vince Carter Night In Toronto
The Sacramento Kings came to Canada looking to spoil the big night in Toronto. The Raptors were celebrating the jersey retirement of their franchise legend, Vince Carter, and got the win to complete the night.
Raptors Legends And Former Teammates Reunited
The schedule makers got it right tonight, as they planned Vince Carter night on the return of another Raptors legend DeMar DeRozan, for the first time in a Kings uniform. The two are good friends, and shared a nice moment before the game, much to the delight of the Toronto crowd.
Carter was joined by many of his teammates from his time with the Raptors, including Muggsy Bogues, Morris Peterson, Charles Oakley, Tracy McGrady, and more. Global superstar rapper Drake was also in the building, a staple of Scotiabank Arena over the years.
It was an emotional Vince Carter, in an extended halftime break, where he was celebrated by the Raptor faithful. In classic Vince fashion, he was nothing but grateful and appreciative of everyone who helped him along the way to NBA immortality.
He finished with a powerful speech, showing love to the fans who had been there through all the ups and downs of his Raptors career, stating "It's all of us going up", "The memories, however you view it, goes up tonight."
A Reunion Of Other Sorts
It was also a reunion of Raptors starting PG Davion Mitchell, and his former Kings teammates. Mitchell spent his first 3 seasons in the NBA with Sacramento, and his former teammates showed him plenty of love prior to the game.
Mitchell was effective on the defensive end as usual, and was good on the other end too, including a sweet crossover move and finish that got the crowd jumping.
First Half Dogfight
Despite the legendary players in the building, it was Chris Boucher of the Raptors who looked like a superstar in the first half. He had 16 points in just 7 minutes off the bench, scoring all over the floor to give Toronto an early lead by as much as 11.
Fortunately for Sacramento, Malik Monk got some points of his own, including a couple of TOUGH step-back threes in the corner. He led the Kings at the half, with 15 off the bench, though the Raptors took a 3-point lead into halftime.
A Game Of Runs
It was more of the same early in the second half, as the Raptors again extended the lead to 11, on the back of some furious defense from Davion Mitchell. Unforced turnovers from Toronto and an upped intensity on the defensive end kept the Kings in the game, cutting the lead to 2 with 2 minutes to go in the third. The Kings struggled mightily on the boards tonight, allowing 12 offensive rebounds, and it resulted in the Raptors leading by 10 at the end of the third.
When the Kings signed DeMar DeRozan this summer, they paired up the two most clutch players in the NBA. That came in handy today, as the pair of DeRozan and De'Aaron Fox scored all but two of the Kings' points in the last 5 minutes, combining for 24 fourth-quarter points.
DeRozan drove to the basket down two, with less than 10 seconds remaining, and Domantas Sabonis tipped in the miss to send the game to overtime.
In OT, DeRozan continued his clutch scoring, with 8 more points, but the Raptors continued to match it. In the end, the Raptors secured a 131-128 win after De'Aaron Fox missed the 3-point look to tie the game.
The Raptors won on the back of their lights-out 3-point shooting, hitting 17/37 (45.9%) from downtown.
Top Performers
RJ Barrett, despite missing some clutch free throws in OT, led the Raptors with 31 points, for back-to-back 30-pieces. Boucher had 24 off the bench, while Gradey Dick and Ochai Agbaji scored 22 apiece.
After a slow start, DeRozan was spectacular for the Kings, finishing with 33 points, though he did have 6 turnovers. Fox had 5 turnovers himself and shot poorly from downtown. He ended with 24 points on 0/11 from three. Malik Monk was good again off the bench for a season-high 21. Domantas Sabonis was also a monster down low, finishing with 20 rebounds to go with 17 points and 10 assists in his first triple-double of the season.
The Kings ' three-game winning streak comes to an end, as the team falls to 3-3. The Raptors end a five-game skid with the win, a perfect way to end Vince Carter night in Toronto.