HOW Did The Toronto Raptors Get Away With THIS…

HOW Did The Toronto Raptors Get Away With THIS…

The Toronto Raptors are legit, folks. What a win. Statement win over the Cleveland Cavaliers to extend their winning streak to eight games. This Raptors team has won 12 of its last 13 games. Their second place in the East. This is one of the hottest teams in basketball. They got the third best record in the month of November next to the Pistons and OKC Thunder. And how about this Raptors team, man? They sweep the season series against the Cavaliers three games to nothing. The Cavaliers were considered a heavy favorite to get out of the Eastern Conference before the season started and the Raptors just beat him three times this season. Of course, they were missing some pieces. I get that. But the Raptors, they were missing RJ Barrett in this one. and they were led by Brandon Ingram, who had his best game as a Raptor. Brandon Ingram scored a season high 37 points to go along with seven rebounds, two assists, a steel. He shot it 30 times in this game. That just shows you how much the Raptors trusted him on offense to get up his shots because he was feeling it in this game. 15 of 30 from the field, 5 of 11 from three, 57.5. true shooting percentage in this win against the Cavaliers. Guys, hit a like, subscribe to the channel. The Raptors are good again. Let’s go. Ring that bell so you stay notified every time I drop a video. Brandon Ingram, man. This is exactly why the Raptors traded for a guy like this. He is the Raptors best offensive talent since Kawhi Leonard. You see it. He is a tremendous bucket getter. He can score every which way. He was on fire. And I just love how the Raptors kept deferring to him, right? When they needed a bucket, they needed Brandon Ingram to go to work, he did exactly that. And when Ingram is in the zone, this is how good he can be. And this was the story with Ingram coming in. We knew he had this offensive bag. We knew he’s a talented offensive player, one of the best pure scorers in the NBA. It was just going to come down to health. And that’s why a lot of people doubted this move. They didn’t think Brandon Ingram could stay healthy. But we’re seeing it. Knock on wood. So far so good. Ingram is showing exactly what he can bring to a team like this. and he has clearly solidified himself as the number one scoring option on this team. I think it’s amazing what they got going on because I look at it like this. Brandon Ingram is the offensive closer on this team as he hit a beautiful sideep three when things were getting close and the Cavaliers were making a comeback. That was a big shot in the game. And then Scotty Barnes is the defensive closer and we saw that, right? The Raptors, their defense really shut the door late in this game with about four minutes left after Donovan Mitchell hit back-to-back threes. They really just buckled down defensively and it was led by Scotty Barnes. Going back to Ingram, when the trade first went down, people were skeptical because we all thought the Raptors were rebuilding and a lot of people criticized it. I mean, there were people on networks saying it wasn’t going to work and it was a desperate attempt for the Raptors to save their franchise and to put out a winner and and to try to save Yugjiri’s job, which by the way, he looks like a genius right now, Eugi does, for putting this team together. Even his agent didn’t think he was going to get the type of money that he got, but the talent was always there. It was just again, could this guy stay healthy? And now we’re looking at it, it’s like, damn, how the hell did the Raptors pull that off of getting Brandon Ingram? Because going back to that deal on the player side of things, they just had to fork away Kelly Olen and Bruce Brown. And then, of course, they gave up the 2026 first round pick, which right now belongs to Indiana, and a 2031 second rounder. But it’s like you’re doing that trade all over again if you had the chance to do that. So, it’s just crazy how things have worked out in hindsight of this team coming together, winning basketball games, and now we’re seeing how legitimate, how good they can be with the true number one option. And that number one option who was highly doubted and questioned coming in is proving just how good he is. and those injury concerns that plagued his career so far, you haven’t had to worry about that as he continues to show that he’s going to impact winning and that’s exactly what he’s done. And even on the nights when he hasn’t had his offense, I I’ve been impressed that like even Ingram is buying into this defensive identity. like we know his limitations when it comes to his defensive play, but even he has been trying to be better on that end. Like he seems bought in and that’s the biggest takeaway when watching Brandon Ingram. It seems like a a player who has found himself and has really just been rejuvenated by a change of scenery. And I think that’s really played into him having a fantastic start to this season with a new team in the Toronto Raptor. As you look at Ingram over the last five games, guys, 24.8 points per game, 5.4 rebounds per game, four assists per game, 1.4 steals per game, shooting at 47.3% from the field, 44.4% from three. You could not have asked for a better start from Brandon Ingram. This was the Brandon Ingram game. And the Raptors don’t win a game like this on the second of a backto-back against a Cleveland team that was desperate to beat the Raptors because they had lost the first two matchups against them. The Raptors do not win this game without Brandon Ingram. And this is why you go allin for a number one option, an offensive talent, a guy who can do this because guys like this when they get hot, they go out there and help you win ball games. So he led the way. The defense shut the door led by Scotty. This was just a tremendous win. This to me was the win that really legitimized the Raptors as a team that’s for real because yeah, you can look at it, you know, they’ve been beating up on some easy competition, but this game right here, I know no Garland there, the Cavaliers were missing some other guys, but the Cavaliers were hungry to get this win. They did not want to get swept by the Raptors in the season series, and the Raptors beat them. and they look good doing it. The Raptors, they are taking care of business against teams they should beat, which is a clear indication that this team is good. And they are continuing their success here. Eight wins in a row. I mean, this is a stretch of success that the Raptors haven’t enjoyed since they won a franchise record 15 games back in that 2019 2020 season. And I just can’t help but to notice the vibes with this team. Tremendous. Like you’re seeing it even in that win against Brooklyn down the stretch of quickly hitting those big threes. You know, just the team photos they’re taking at after the game. How these guys are communicating with each other. They’re all bought in. Like Darko’s got these guys playing exceptionally well. They’re top 10 in all the major categories in terms of offensive rating, defensive rating, net rating. And this is a team that is getting multiple guys to produce. You know, was Jacobe Walter stepping up in that game against the Nets and this team continues to win. This has been a fun season and a long time coming for this Raptors team. They are second in the East, guys. second longest winning streak in the Eastern Conference behind the Pistons who they trail in the standings, but they are 13 and5. Complete turnaround from that 1 and4 start and we’ll see if they can keep it going. Guys, if you want to see more Raptors content, hit a like, subscribe, did a video about Mamu, who was also beautiful contributor from Off the Bench in this one, go check out that one. Let me know down below what other Raptors content you want to see. But as always, thank you so much for watching. Your support is greatly appreciated. This is Luke signing off.

The Toronto Raptors look like geniuses right now for trading for Brandon Ingram.

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