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The Game 1 curse is over! Well, at least for this round.
The Toronto Raptors — yes, the team with as many Round 1, Game 1 victories as they have NBA titles — jumped out to an early lead on the Brooklyn Nets and never let go. Concerns heading into the series surrounded Toronto’s half-court offense, Brooklyn’s propensity to take three-pointers, and Pascal Siakam’s offensive struggles during re-seeding games.
All of those questions were answered resoundly in the first half. Igniting the Raptors’ blistering first quarter was an assertive Spicy P. He looked like All-NBA two-way star that has elevated Toronto’s ceiling all season long. Yet, the reigning Most Improved Player was not the star of the game.
Listen to our post-game podcast, as we marvel at the brilliance of Fred VanVleet, appreciate the fight the Nets brought to the game, and get a little too excited over a Game 1 victory!