VANVLEET SEEKS REDEMPTION AGAINST SIXERS
Raptors star didn't exactly shine in series with Philadelphia during title run in 2019
The last time Fred Vanvleet played the Philadelphia 76ers in the playoffs, he spent a lot of time not playing at all.
It's easily forgotten, given that in 2019 Vanvleet found his shooting touch in the subsequent series against the Milwaukee Bucks, and hit several huge three-pointers in the NBA Finals win over Golden State, but he was a mess against Philly. Vanvleet averaged two points over seven games against the Sixers, making 3-of-24 fieldgoal attempts. He made one — a pause here to theatrically tug on the collar — of his 14 tries from three-point range. One!
My colleague Mike Ganter asked him on Thursday what the key was for getting past those struggles.
“Kawhi (Leonard) making a shot, and moving on to Milwaukee,” Vanvleet said, a touch of deadpan in his voice. This elicited some chuckles.
“I'm being honest,” Vanvleet said. “That ball bouncing up there three or four times, and then there's a fresh series on the other side of it.”
There sure was. Vanvleet went from being unable to hit water from a boat against the Sixers to hitting 57 per cent of his threes against the Bucks. After that one lonely three-ball against Philly, he hit 16 against the Bucks and another 16 against the Warriors.
The Shot, obviously, completely changed the fortunes of the Raptors as a whole, but with the possible exception of Kyle Lowry, it's hard to imagine anyone being personally more affected by the physics of the ball bouncing on the rim at Scotiabank Arena as time expired in Game 7 against the Sixers. That The Shot ultimately dropped gave Vanvleet a platform for redemption, from which he hit those big shots again, became a starter the following season, and now an all-star and (likely) all-defence player.
Does any of that happen if the ball fell off the rim instead of falling through it?
As the Raptors prepare to start another post-season run, it is worth remembering that it's these moments, the plays that hinge on a considerable degree of chance — plain old luck — that can set the narratives that are ultimately written about a team, or a player. In Vanvleet's case, there were reasons for his struggles in the second round. The Sixers had a bunch of large men who could guard on the perimeter, and then caused problems for Toronto's longrange shooters. The Raptors had to abandon some of their usual offensive sets and rotations, and so Vanvleet went from running certain plays with the second unit for long stretches to trying to contribute in a more limited role. It didn't take.
“We don't have to walk through the details of that,” Vanvleet said of what went wrong against the Sixers. Fair enough. He said he essentially waited it out. “I was able to stick around long enough without going off the deep end there mentally, and was able to maintain and keep my composure long enough to see it turn around.”
The same can be said, really, for the Raptors organization. Once past Philadelphia, they were back in the Eastern Conference final and had achieved the bare-minimum result that justified the decision to trade Demar Derozan for the lottery ticket of a year with Kawhi Leonard.
The wins against Milwaukee and Golden State burnished the reputation of Nick Nurse and his coaching staff, who designed defences to inhibit Giannis Antetokounmpo and Steph Curry. Nurse got a fat raise and is now so well-regarded that he's the kind of coach who gets mentioned when a glamour job in Los Angeles opens up. Lowry went from someone who had been mocked around the league for his post-season resume to someone who had the game of his life to clinch the NBA title, and who turned that into an Us$85-million payday with the Miami Heat, something that would have been unthinkable for a 35-year-old guard with a history of playoff disappointments.
None of that happens if the ball doesn't fall their way.
A number of players in this series are familiar with the thin margins between playoff glory and shame. Philadelphia's Joel Embiid was something of a mystery in that 2019 series, fourth in minutes on his team and scoring fewer than 18 points per game. He was in tears after The Shot, and it seemed like that result might haunt him. Instead, he grew into a dominant force, stayed healthy, and won a scoring title this season.
James Harden has scored at least 40 points in a playoff game nine times and has another 35 playoff games with at least 30 points, but he carries the stink of some historically awful post-season eggs, most notably the 2018 flame-out as a member of the Houston Rockets, when he shot a smooth 18 per cent from three-point range over the final four games of a series they blew to Golden State. But he could be just one deep run, and maybe a fortunate bounce, from an entirely different legacy.
It's in the playoffs where the history is written. Let us see what stories will unfold.
I was able to stick around long enough without going off the deep end there mentally, and was able to maintain and keep my composure long enough to see it turn around.”