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As of tonight, the Toronto Raptors have officially lost their twelfth consecutive game to the New York Knicks, continuing a disheartening pattern begun in 2023. Brandon Ingram’s 31 wasn’t enough to outscore the top dogs of the Atlantic Division, as the Knicks hammered Toronto for a 111-95 loss. It’s fitting for New York to have rubbed salt in the wound on the day that Toronto is celebrating “Bills Night”, honouring Canadian fandom for upstate New York’s NFL team. If this was punishment for our city supporting the Bills instead of an NYC team, I can go to sleep a little easier with the knowledge that the Giants stink. Small mercies.
The Knicks coming to Canada these days means a reunion: OG Anunoby comes back to the city where he won a ring, and RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley get a chance to see new versions of their longtime team. But tonight, there was an even rarer homecoming from Raptors legends turned Bills owners Tracy McGrady and Vince Carter. The cousins were acting as ambassadors for their NFL team, attempting to do in Canada for the sport of football much what they did for the sport of basketball in the 1990s.
The game began on a positive note for Toronto. Threes for the Raptors fell easily at the start of the first quarter, with IQ and Ingram’s strokes from deep hitting their marks. Toronto played pass-first basketball, facilitating and kicking out for long range bombs, while letting Ingram lean on the mid-range shot he’s made so famous.
The Raptors ran a two-guard lineup with both Quickley and Shead, letting Quickley focus on offence and Shead tackle the tough defensive assignment of guarding Brunson. Shead was a pest this quarter, stuck on Brunson like white on rice, forcing turnovers and guarding him tightly. The Raps jumped out to an early lead that was slowly relinquished to the Knicks. Subbing out members of the starting lineup seemed to disrupt momentum the Raptors had built, and their luck from long range would not continue. With a Mikal Bridges three, the Raptors lead to was erased, Knicks up one. RJ Barrett was unable to make a last second layup, leaving the score at the end of the first quarter 32-31 New York.
Into the second, the Knicks unleashed their own mirror to Shead in Jose Alvarado, who not only hounded Immanuel Quickley, but looked more than comfortable finishing at the rim, at that. With a Karl-Anthony Towns dunk, a double digit deficit appeared, but that aggression came at the cost of a third foul for Towns, who was quickly pulled for Bridges. While the Raptors pushed back, the Knicks maintained a gap of multiple possessions off the back of a scoring burst from Landry Shamet. It was now the Knicks whose facilitation stood out, as they swung the rock back and forth with grace, setting up teammates for shots without leaning on self-creation in excess. With a minute left and the ball in Brunson’s hands, he drove in past defenders and laid it in with grace. Barnes’ three missed off an airtight pass from a driving RJ Barrett. New York led by ten at the end of the half, 68-58.
Into the third quarter, while the game remained a series of back and forth punches, a driving layup from Scottie brought the game to within four points, and off a Jamal Shead lob, Barnes got a slam dunk to cut the New York lead to two. For a moment, it seemed as if at the end of the third quarter, the Raptors would masterfully turn it around. The arena seemingly held its breath; and with the punch of a Jalen Brunson three, the wind was knocked out of the stadium as the Knicks maintained their lead. The third quarter ended 87-82 for the Knicks.
At the beginning of the fourth, RJ Barrett was subbed in, dropping in a three to make the game a single possession contest, continuing to put the Raptors on his shoulders offensively this quarter as he kept pouring in buckets, creating his own shots or splashing buckets off dimes. While they could score, nothing could seem to contain the Knicks’ offence. Halfway through the quarter, the Raptors got another breath of fresh air, Immanuel Quickley’s jumpshot bringing it to within two, as an ill timed full-court pass from Jamal Shead sent the ball into the stands, and left the spectators crying out as momentum stalled. The Raptors pulled Quickley for Shead, otherwise bringing back their starting lineup for a defensive oriented squad; Coach Darko Rajaković noted postgame that Toronto was attempting to foul for a chance to put Quickley back in, but were unable to.
Jalen Brunson proved his nickname Captain Clutch to be true as he drilled in a three to bring the lead back out of reach, hitting 100 points with his shot. As the Knicks kept firing, stellar offensive rebounding allowed them to keep possession. From here on out, the rest of the game was garbage time.
As a facilitator, Scottie Barnes was lacklustre tonight, notching only one assist.
“Maybe at the end there, we let their physicality get to us a little bit too much,” said Poeltl, reflecting on the game.
As New York ascends to the top of the East, and Toronto continues to falter, being able to win those tight fourth quarters will be what shifts this year’s Raptors squad from a fringe playoff team getting lucky, to a serious contending roster. It just seems that we’re not quite there yet.