Is This as Good as It Gets for the Toronto Raptors?
You know it's been an unusual night for the Toronto Raptors when Bismack Biyombo is the BMOC—the Big Man On the Court.
Thrust once again into Dwane Casey's starting lineup in place of the injured Jonas Valanciunas, Biyombo came through with 26 rebounds—a franchise record and career high—to lead the Toronto Raptors to a 99-84 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
Toronto's second-string center was all over the floor at the Air Canada Centre.
After watching his teammates struggle to keep LeBron James and company out of the lane, Biyombo helped hold the East's reigning king to nine shots at the rim and the Cavaliers, as a whole, to 20 points in the paint. His rim protection emboldened Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan, DeMarre Carroll and the rest of the Raptors' perimeter defenders to harass Kyrie Irving—who scored 53 points on 59 percent shooting between Games 1 and 2—into a 3-of-19 shooting night.
Of all the stars on hand, it was Biyombo who defended like Dennis Rodman, grabbed boards like Dwight Howard and Hakeem Olajuwon...
...and wagged his finger like Dikembe Mutombo.
"It's big," DeRozan told ESPN's Doris Burke of Biyombo's performance on the broadcast after the game. "He's a monster down there. He gets us going. He gives us the opportunity to get out in transition and take advantage of it."
It's a good thing the Raptors took advantage of Biyombo's lightning in a bottle. What are the odds they catch it again—from their second-string center, no less?
Probably about as slim as putting together a game-turning run without Lowry. But that's what Toronto did. After Lowry picked up his third foul with eight minutes, seven seconds left in the second quarter, the Raptors ripped off a 16-5 spurt and eventually put the Cavaliers in an 18-point hole, Cleveland's biggest of the 2016 playoffs so far. That included a three-pointer from Cory Joseph, Lowry's understudy, following a Biyombo block on Irving.
Toronto has more than enough reinforcements in its backcourt to survive a short night from Lowry, who finished with 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting.
DeRozan, for one, can do and did plenty of damage himself—when he's at home, anyway. He was aggressive from the get-go, slashing his way to 12 points in the first quarter and a game-high 32 by the final buzzer.
| Home | 37.8 | 24.9 | 5 | 2.4 | 1.4 | 1.4 |
| Away | 36.6 | 16 | 3.6 | 2.8 | 3 | 0.8 |
Joseph chipped in 14 points and three assists off the bench while lending his hand to Toronto's stellar defensive effort.
Joseph, though, wasn't alone in holding the Cavs to 35.4 percent shooting and under 100 points for the first time in this postseason. Luis Scola didn't score in his 17 minutes but did his part to keep Kevin Love (1-of-9 from the field) uncomfortable. Patrick Patterson (10 points, six rebounds) and James Johnson added to the frenzy on the Raptors' behalf.
But will Toronto's defenders, subpar and superb alike, step up together to this extent again? Can the Raptors expect as many of James and Irving's close attempts to rim out so harmlessly in Game 4 and beyond?
Those questions figure to be tough ones for the Raptors to answer. So will any about Biyombo's ability to replicate his breathtaking performance anytime soon.
But the Raptors won't have to rely entirely on anomalies from here on out. Chances are, Lowry won't be in foul trouble every night.
At some point, Valanciunas could be back in action, returning Biyombo's manic energy to the second unit. Valanciunas, who is averaging 15 points and 12.1 rebounds in the playoffs, suffered an ankle injury in Game 3 of Toronto's second-round series against the Miami Heat.
DeRozan getting buckets is no fluke; he scored 30 or more 14 times during the regular season and three times across Toronto's first two postseason series.
Neither is it at all out of the ordinary for Carroll to wreak havoc defensively and add a few buckets offensively, as he did with his 10 points in Game 3.
Finding more bulletin-board material shouldn't be a problem. Between Biyombo's breakout and the second-quarter swelling of the lead sans Lowry, there's plenty of reason to believe the Raptors got "lucky" and that Toronto won't be long for this series.
The Cavs weren't 10-0 in this postseason, riding a postseason 17-game winning streak against the East, by accident. They were leading all playoff participants in three-point makes, attempts and percentage. During its first two games against Toronto, Cleveland had its way inside, scoring 106 points in the paint combined.
In Game 3, the Raptors found a way to wall off the interior and limit the Cavaliers to 34.1 percent shooting beyond the arc.
"Everybody thought we were going to get swept and I thought that fueled us," Casey said at his postgame press conference, per CBS Sports' James Herbert.
No longer can anyone talk about the Raptors going down without a fight. Where and how they strike next will have everything to do with how long they stay upright against the East's lone heavyweight.
Stats per NBA.com and Basketball-Reference.com unless otherwise cited.
