Canadians too much
Aurora’s Nembhard leads Pacers’ trio, ices game with last-minute three
With a background that could make him an honorary citizen, Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle played a big part in making Canadian basketball history Wednesday night.
The native of Ogdensburg, N.Y, just across the St. Lawrence from Prescott, Ont., ran out a starting lineup against the Raptors that included three Canadians, the first time three had started for the same team in an NBA game.
And they celebrated all night long. The trio — Aurora’s Andrew Nembhard, Montreal’s Bennedict Mathurin and Mississauga’s Oshae Brissett — played vital roles as the Pacers upset the Raptors 118-114 at the Scotiabank Arena, snapping Toronto’s seven-game winning streak at home.
“For it to happen in Toronto, it’s pretty cool,” Carlisle said. “All three of those guys played well. Nembhard had a great game, Mathurin was terrific. I thought Brissett did what he does. He gave us energy, rebounded, he scored the first five points of the game. That was great.”
The loss kept the Raptors from making any move in the muddled Eastern Conference play-in picture and was a disheartening way to begin a four-game homestand.
The Raptors were without three key rotation players as Scottie Barnes (wrist), Gary Trent Jr. (elbow) and Precious Achiuwa sat out.
It forced them into a series of odd combinations that included a rookie centre (Christian Koloko), a guard on a two-way contract who hadn’t played a minute of an NBA game since Feb. 26 (Jeff Dowtin Jr.) and an emergency starter who had been waived by Washington last month (Will Barton).
It had a predictable impact as the Raptors looked disjointed for most of the night. They trailed by as many as 15 points before they got settled and made a game of it.
“Didn’t feel super organized at either end at the start or for a while,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. “Didn’t shoot it nearly well enough with a bunch of wide open shots in the game as well and just couldn’t quite get over the hump.”
Pascal Siakam had 31 points and Fred VanVleet added 28, with 10 assists. Siakam was just 2-for-9 from the floor in the first half but had 25 points in the second.
“We’re down a couple guys and missing some scoring and things like that, you need Fred, Pascal. O.G. (Anunoby) — our main guys — to step up and play and I didn’t think Pascal was into the game early,” Nurse said.
“He certainly got going toward the end of the (first) half and certainly most of the second half.”
The Raptors led in the fourth quarter and were within four points with a minute left but couldn’t complete the rally. A Nembhard three-pointer with 32.5 seconds left was the dagger. The three Canadian pacers combined for 49 points and Nembhard registered a 25-point, 10-assist doubledouble.
“That three-point shot (Nembhard) hit to put us up seven, that was the shot that put the game away,” Carlisle said.
“Just an amazing night for him and his family.”
There is something about Nembhard’s maturity and skill set that thrills NBA talent evaluators. Nurse has said Nembhard’s predraft workout was the best the Raptors have witnessed and Carlisle lauded his ability to adapt to a faster, tougher, better pro game.
“He just had a maturity beyond his years. His skill level and feel was exceptional,” Carlisle said before the game. “What got him on the floor initially for us was how tough and physical he was defensively. He’s guarding one of the best two players every night at the beginning of the game..”
Nembhard’s offence is mighty impressive, too. He had 14 of his points in the first quarter Wednesday, easily shredding defenders on the perimeter and running pick-and-roll action like a seven-year veteran.
“It looked like we were moving a full step slow there,” Nurse said. “He was getting past us and to the rim pretty easily to start the game. We didn’t put up much resistance at all, maybe the first nine to 12 possessions.”