VanVleet’s rise catches opponents off guard
Backcourt glut looms with Wright nearing return — nice problem to have
MEMPHIS— A second-year guard undrafted out of college and third on the depth chart when the season began has become an integral part of the finishing lineup the Raptors employ.
Fred VanVleet was on the court again in crunch time here Friday night, helping spark a fourth-quarter comeback as Toronto won its fifth straight game, 116-107 over the Memphis Grizzlies.
He’s earned the added responsibility because he possesses all the character traits Toronto coach Dwane Casey holds dear to his heart.
“His toughness, his mental toughness, his ability to shoot the ball, diving on the floor, his defence. He brings so much to the table,” Casey said of VanVleet after Friday’s win. “He doesn’t get rattled. He’s a mature young man.”
VanVleet, who spent four years at Wichita State and only cracked To- ronto’s roster with a stellar performance at the 2016 Summer League in Las Vegas, is never going to take his added responsibility for granted. The faith of Casey and his teammates drives him.
“Nah, I’m liking it, though,” he said. “I’m enjoying it. It’s the best time to be in the game with all the marbles on the line, closing it out.”
Ahandful of factors have contributed to VanVleet getting a regular call these days to play deep into fourth quarters.
His shooting is a big plus: He’s made eight of 17 three-pointers over Toronto’s current five-game winning streak, and that puts additional pressure on a defence that also has to deal with Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan.
VanVleet’s also a solid ball-handler, committing only four turnovers in almost 102 minutes over the last five games, and that lets Lowry play off the ball.
And the continued injury absence of Delon Wright has opened up more minutes in the last month than normally would be available.
“As long as my conditioning holds up I’ll be all right,” VanVleet said after he played the last 15 minutes against Memphis in Toronto’s comeback win.
“A couple of those (fourth-quarter) timeouts were key for me. Trying to pick up full and flying around, it can wear on you, but you just got to find it in you to try and finish it out.”
When Wright returns, it’s going to create some difficult decisions for Casey. Wright had shown an ability to guard both backcourt positions and some small forwards, and had played alongside Lowry and DeRozan as VanVleet does.
There’s no way all four can play at the same time, and the decision for Casey will be which of Wright and VanVleet is suitable for each matchup. Wright’s still not ready to return from a shoulder injury suffered last month, but he is travelling with the Raptors on their current road trip and isn’t far from being back.
“I think we have the opportunity with Delon, Fred, Norm (Powell),” Lowry said of any finishing group. “We’ve got guys who can play basketball and guys who are very talented and play extremely hard. You never know, whoever has it going is going to finish the game.
“We believe in each other.”