Coaches’ vote is no slam dunk
VanVleet has decent case to be all-star, but also plenty of competition
It’s been a long time since an NBA all-star game didn’t include a member of the Toronto Raptors.
The last time it happened, in 2013, Bryan Colangelo was in his last days as general manager, Dwane Casey was in his second season as head coach, and the 34-win Raptors didn’t make the playoffs. Tim Leiweke knew enough to be appalled by this state of affairs. Masai Ujiri arrived shortly thereafter. The playoffs became an annual expectation. And in the seven all-star games since, there has been at least one Raptor on the roster. In the most recent five editions of the game, there’ve been two.
But this year, things have changed. The NBA’s traditional all-star weekend has been reduced to an all-star Sunday, with the three-point and slamdunk contests taking place on the same day as the game. And as for Toronto-centric participation — for the first time in a long time, it’s a long way from a given. The Raptors didn’t earn a nod among the East’s starting five when those positions were announced last week. And with just seven roster spots yet to be named, this based on voting by NBA coaches that’ll be announced Tuesday night, let’s just say a Raptor representative, while hardly an impossibility, remains an underdog’s cause.
As Pascal Siakam was saying Monday: “We hope somebody can get the nod — Fred (VanVleet), me, Kyle (Lowry), whoever.”
You can appreciate the hopefulness intermingled with confidence in Siakam’s public plea. But let’s face it: Siakam, though he was a starter in last year’s game, isn’t on anybody’s list to make this year’s team. His performance, though it’s shown recent signs of recovery from the dismal depths of last summer’s bubble struggle, has been far too spotty.
Lowry is a different story. He’s been an all-star for six straight seasons before this one. And at his best, he’s shown more than a few flashes of being Toronto’s best player at age 34. Still, it hasn’t helped that his numbers are down slightly this season, or that his team is 4-0 without him in the lineup. Unless coaches are giving Lowry a vote based on legacy, in other words, his is an unlikely candidacy.
Which brings us to VanVleet, who ranks as Toronto’s most likely representative. On the heels of signing a free-agent contract worth an annual average of about $21.25 million (U.S.), VanVleet is having his best year yet.
He’s averaging 20.1 points and 6.6 assists a game, both career highs. And he’s among the league leaders in a handful of defensive categories; as of Monday afternoon he held the top spot in total steals and deflections, this while ranking second in total loose balls recovered. If not for Toronto’s dismal 2-8 start to the season — they’ve been 14-7 ever since — he’d probably be a shoo-in to be selected.
Still, there are only seven spots remaining to be filled. Two are designated for “backcourt” players. Three are “frontcourt” choices. Another two are “wild card,” position agnostic picks. There are backcourt players who are widely seen as more worthy. Brooklyn’s James Harden and Boston’s Jaylen Brown are on that list. Philadelphia’s Ben Simmons and Chicago’s Zach LaVine might be on it, too. You can make the case VanVleet is better than at least a couple of those players, sure. Certainly it helps that he’s had a signature game, his franchise-recordsetting 54-point outburst earlier this month, even if it doesn’t help that Toronto has been over .500 for a relative blink, this after Sunday’s big win over the Sixers pushed them to 16-15.
Coach Nick Nurse, either way, spent some of Monday making the case for VanVleet.
“I think that what his biggest asset is, his competitive drive and the way he influences winning,” Nurse told reporters Monday. “Now, what is that? You can probably add up a lot of things. His defence, his hands, his feet, his toughness, his big shot-making, his ballhandling — there’s lots. His leadership. There’s lots that go under that category. But I think what his biggest asset is — he’s a winner.”
If VanVleet has one thing going for him, it’s that he’s a coach’s dream — undoubtedly a future coach, if he so chooses — and this is a coach’s vote. And he’s got at least a few NBA head coaches who know him well. Certainly Casey, now the head coach in Detroit, is a fan. Ditto Nate Bjorkgren, the longtime Nurse pal who left the Raptors to take over the Indiana Pacers’ bench in October. And add to the list Chris Finch, the first-year Raptors assistant who on Monday was announced as the new head coach of the league-worst Timberwolves, who fired Ryan Saunders on Sunday.
For the Raptors, it’ll mean another unexpected adjustment in a Tampa-based season filled with such unwelcome surprises.
“We’ll just conjure some things up,” Nurse said. “I’ll probably try to take over most of the offensive duties here for a little bit. And obviously we’ve got some guys who’ve been around a while that know how things are run all over: offence, defence, special teams … I’m working through it right now, thinking through it right now. But we’ve got to re-org it here before we throw it up (Tuesday against the Sixers), that’s for sure.”
A mid-season poaching of an opposing assistant isn’t common. But neither are NBA head-coach openings. So while the Raptors can’t be thrilled that Finch, known especially for his knack as an offensive tactician, will be bringing his playbook to another team, no respectably run franchise would deny an employee such a rare opportunity.
“I think it says … we’ve had a lot of success,” Nurse said. “I’ve always seen it as my job to try to get people to maximize their career ambitions.”
Whether or not the expansion of the Raptors coaching tree will help VanVleet, we’ll know soon enough.