VANVLEET READY TO ROLL FOR RAPTORS
All-star guard's health key in series against Sixers
Fred VanVleet is feeling better, which should make Toronto Raptors fans feel better as well.
A bothersome knee bruise has been playing havoc with VanVleet's ability to play up to the high standard he sets for himself and his teammates, but some down time has him sounding more hopeful than he has been about his status since probably heading into the all-star break.
“How did I know that was going to be the first question,” VanVleet said, smiling as he sat down at the podium and was immediately hit with the `How you feeling these days?' question.
“I've had a pretty good week of work,” VanVleet said following another lengthy practice as the Raptors prepare for Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarter-final series against the Philadelphia 76ers. “I'm getting ready for this series. It could go really good or really bad. I'm optimistic about it. I feel good. Continue to do all my work and my rehab. It's (the knee issue) not going anywhere. Definitely feeling a lot better than the last time you saw me.”
As health updates go, it wasn't a totally uplifting one, but as with all things about VanVleet, it was realistic.
And VanVleet will be the first to tell you the Raptors are going to need all their key guys operating at or near peak performance to knock off the Sixers.
The margin for error, as both VanVleet and head coach Nick Nurse have referenced on several occasions this season, is very slim with this young Raptors team.
The Raptors have had some decent success against the Sixers this year and in the recent past, but as with everything in life, the Sixers continue to evolve.
As good as Joel Embiid was three years ago — when the Raptors needed a Kawhi Leonard off-balance four-bounce three-pointer at the buzzer to advance — he's significantly better now.
“He was a little more back to the basket then, playing like a five,” VanVleet said of the 2019 version of Embiid.
“Now, he's turned into Kevin Durant, Michael Jordan, Kobe, Shaq all put together, so, he's handling a little bit more, he's playing on the perimeter a little bit more. He's facing up at the nail, he's playing at the elbows so he can see where the help comes. You can see the jumper, the touch is there, he's found different ways to get to the line, he's using his size on mismatches.
“He just continues to get better and that's probably the most overlooked part of what we do in the league, we forget that these all-world guys and these incredible talents can get better and he's certainly gotten a ton better since 2019.
“We got our work cut out for us for sure, but we'll put together a plan and we'll throw a bunch of bodies at him and see if we can make it tough for him.”
But it's not just Embiid the Raptors have to prepare to face. There's also the not insignificant addition of former league MVP James Harden to the Sixers' lineup about 23 games ago.
Harden doesn't look quite like MVP-level Harden these days, which may be attributable to a hamstring issue that both he and head coach Doc Rivers insist is no longer a problem.
Harden doesn't appear to have the burst or that jump at the end of those drives to the bucket that normally end in either a score or a trip to the free throw line.
But like VanVleet, Harden has had some time to rest up for these playoffs and that deadly Harden/Embiid pick and roll — they're as tough a duo to guard as there is in the league — could yet prove deadly for the Raptors.
“Couple months ago, couple weeks ago, they were title favourites not that long ago,” VanVleet said. “I haven't forgotten that, I know how dangerous this team can be and just looking forward to the challenge.”
Though the Raptors head into Game 1 of the series as four-point underdogs as well as underdogs to take the series overall, VanVleet said he feels pretty good about his team's chances. The Raptors are getting healthy and they seem to be peaking at just the right time, something VanVleet credits his coach with making happen.
“I've got to give credit to Nick Nurse and our coaching staff for having a real game plan for the season and having a scheme and a plan,” Nurse said. “We'll take our development and our approach and our game plans in stages. I've been around long enough to see it; you could just see it as it picks up, as the season goes on, there's more detail, it's more strict, it's more focused. And you could see the path of the team, the maturity process and I think this year it just worked because we were pretty new, all of us, to the team and playing together early on and we started to jell as we got guys healthy and here we are.
“Again, it'll be a challenge, as we know,” VanVleet said. “Philly's a great team, but I like the group that we have and I'm excited to go out there and face the challenge.”
I've had a pretty good week of work. I'm getting ready for this series. It could go really good or really bad. I'm optimistic about it. I feel good.