Game Thread: Toronto Raptors @ Boston Celtics

In last season’s playoffs against the Celtics, watching the Raptors offense was like the “Scott’s Tots” episode of The Office — you know pretty early where the story is headed, but it’s still painful to watch it play out. We knew coming into the playoffs that Toronto’s lineups had issues scoring in the halfcourt, and that’s exactly what we saw against a stout Celtics defense. The Raptors other end was almost enough to make up for it, but... well, you know the rest.

We’ve seen some of those half court struggles play out this season too. In the Raptors first matchup with Boston, during a stretch where they started the year 2-8, the problems flared up again as the team shot 13-for-37 from deep and lost by double digits.

Now, though, there’s reason for some optimism. The Raptors have been pouring it in offensively since Norman Powell joined the starting lineup. Powell has been part of the solution, but Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam have also lifted the team’s upside with big numbers; the Raptors now have the league’s sixth best offense by rating. Their latest outing saw Toronto drop 137 points on the Wizards, so there’s reason to believe that the team looks better coming into this Celtics matchup than they did the last.

Unfortunately, they will go into the game without OG Anunoby and Yuta Watanabe once again, who are both close to returning (questionable before the tip) but will sit out.

For a full setup of tonight’s game, check out Zakaria Abdulle’s preview from this morning. Now, here are the game details.

Where to Watch

TSN, 7:30 PM ET

Lineups

Toronto — Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet, Norman Powell, Pascal Siakam, Aron Baynes

Boston — Kemba Walker, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Daniel Theis, Tristan Thompson

Injuries

Toronto — Yuta Watanabe (out - ankle), OG Anunoby (out - calf), Patrick McCaw (out - knee)

Boston — Robert Williams (out - hip) Marcus Smart (out - calf), Romeo Langford (out - wrist)