Valanciunas giving Raptors reason for optimism
Toronto centre starting to refine his post-game
• Young players learn all sorts of lessons in their formative years in the NBA. You hear about them all of the time: how to pace yourself for an 82-game season, what constitutes a good shot, how to eat well, how to improve within the context of his team’s defence.
In his first few years, DeMar DeRozan learned a different lesson, one that is not discussed as often: never steal a big man’s rebound. He learned that from Reggie Evans.
“You’d better not touch a Reggie Evans rebound or you’re going to deal with him in the locker room,” DeRozan said last week.
“If you take their rebounds, they’re going to get mad at you. (Jonas Valanciunas) is starting to get there. You can tell he’s becoming more aggressive when it comes to that rebounding, being able to get second-chance points. That comes with experience. When you’re young in the league, you don’t really pay attention to that. That’s definitely big, for him to give us an extra chance to continue to get buckets. And he wants the ball more in the post.”
It is that last part that has the Raptors excited about Valanciunas’s lateseason progress, even as the team remains stuck in a poor state. Offence has not been the Raptors’ biggest issue this year, but it could quickly become a problem against their two most likely first-round opponents — Washington and Milwaukee are the two stingiest teams in the Eastern Conference. Milwaukee, in particular, has a host of long-armed wing defenders that could frustrate Kyle Lowry, DeRozan and Lou Williams, but is not especially equipped to control Valanciunas down low.
To that end, the Raptors will need Valanciunas to create good offensive looks inside. He is shooting 57 per cent from the floor this year, with his turnover rate dropping from last year, as well. Both of those things start with him catching the ball closer to the basket.
“That’s my job, to be inside the paint,” Valanciunas said. “I have to be comfortable. That’s my home.”
The Raptors have been trying to live by a rule that discourages Valanciunas’s teammates from passing him the ball unless he has established relatively deep post position. Most of the centre’s early-season issues occurred when he had to take too many dribbles with his back to the basket in order to get to a spot where he could shoot comfortably.
It is not just Valanciunas’s shots that have been positively affected. He now looks like a far more comfortable passer. When doubled against Boston, Valanciunas found an open Greivis Vasquez for a three-pointer on Saturday night.
“He’s recognizing where the help [defender is coming from]. But what helps him to see better and for them to really clearly make a decision is when you get deep in the paint,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. “If you’re really out there, (perimeter defenders on the opposition) can kind of be in between (and play both (the shot and the pass). If you get two feet in the paint, they’ve got to make a decision whether to come in. It’s clear for him to either make a pass out or make the play.”
Valanciunas has 10 assists over the last seven games, which does not sound impressive until you consider that he went 11 straight games without an assist in January. He has taken at least nine field-goal attempts in each of his last seven games, erasing the memory of the game before that stretch, when he took just one shot in 24 minutes in a loss to Chicago.
Overall, he has been more assertive in various aspects of the game. That might not be enough to fix this year’s Raptors, but it certainly portends well for seasons to come.