The Raptors might get Jonas Valanciunas back for Game 4 vs. Cavs
After looking like dead men walking after two blowout losses in Ohio, the Toronto Raptors stormed back to life on Saturday, scoring a 99-84 Game 3 win, riding a relentless interior performance from Bismack Biyombo and strong scoring from the backcourt troika of DeMar DeRozan, Kyle Lowry and Cory Joseph to get on the board in the Eastern Conference finals. What looked like a possible sweep 48 hours ago could fast become a tied series, and the Raptors got closer Monday afternoon to welcoming back someone who could prove a big help in getting things knotted up:
[Follow Dunks Don’t Lie on Tumblr: The best slams from all of basketball]
Jonas Valanciunas (ankle) upgraded to gametime decision. Signs are that he will play tonight for Raptors vs. Cavs.
— Brian Windhorst (@WindhorstESPN) May 23, 2016
Asked if Jonas Valanciunas (sprained ankle) will play in Game 4, Dwane Casey said, “We’ll see.” Some optimism within organization, too.
— Jeff Zillgitt (@JeffZillgitt) May 23, 2016
Centre Jonas Valanciunas has been upgraded to questionable for Game 4 tonight vs. Cleveland. #rtz
— RaptorsMR (@RaptorsMR) May 23, 2016
While “questionable” remains a far cry from “probable” or “totally healthy and ready to go,” it’s still the best designation the Raptors have afforded center Jonas Valanciunas since he suffered a right ankle injury in the third quarter of Game 3 of Toronto’s second-round matchup with the Miami Heat:
The severe ankle sprain kept Valanciunas out for the remainder of that series, and for the first three games of this one, removing from Dwane Casey’s rotation the 7-foot mauler who had beaten up the Heat and Indiana Pacers on the inside to the tune of 15 points on 55 percent shooting, 12.1 rebounds and nearly 2.5 combined blocks and steals in 28.5 minutes per playoff game. Through the first 10 games of the 2016 postseason, the opposition outscored Toronto by 7.4 points per 100 possessions with Valanciunas off the floor, while the Raptors played just about even (-0.3 points-per-100 in 285 minutes) with the Lithuanian on the court.
Biyombo has largely been tremendous since his elevation from the second unit to Toronto’s starting five in Valanciunas’ stead, changing multiple postseason games with his shot-blocking, interior deterrence, rebounding acumen, screen-setting and pick-and-roll prowess. But insufficient deeper-bench answers at the five spot — sorry, Jason Thompson and Lucas “Bebe” Nogueira, but these haven’t been your finest hours — have left the Raptors susceptible to rough patches when Biyombo has needed to rest.
Getting Valanciunas back would help restore Toronto’s center spot to a position of strength — and, if he’s ready to pick up where he left off in Miami, perhaps tilt the balance of power in this series. From Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com, prior to Game 2 of the conference finals (emphasis mine):
“I saw [Jonas] walking, so that was positive. He wasn’t sitting,” [Raptors general manager Masai] Ujiri said Wednesday. “I don’t know if we’ll be able to have him back. You wish a guy like that could be playing, because I feel that’s a difference — he’d be the best big guy in the game by far to me, so that would’ve helped us. But we don’t have that and that’s the nature of the NBA. You move on.”
Until, of course, you no longer have to move on — and for the Raptors, that could happen as soon as Monday night.
Despite being upgraded from doubtful on Sunday to questionable on Monday, it remains to be seen just how mobile Valanciunas will be in his return, how many minutes he’d be capable of logging after spending more than two weeks on the shelf, and how effective he’d be against a Cavaliers attack that has seemed intent on spreading its frontcourt players out to create more driving lanes:
If JV does play, I imagine it will be a dramtically decreased workload, in comfortable situations. Likely won’t be chasing Love/Frye around.
— Eric Koreen (@ekoreen) May 23, 2016
Jonas Valanciunas is a game-time decision, but between Thompson’s activity and Love and Fry’s three-point spacing, would be a tricky ask.
— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) May 23, 2016
If Valanciunas’ ankle is up to the challenge of moving in space, though, his offensive presence could prove exceptionally helpful. When he’s right, Valanciunas can act as a post-up monster and interior offensive hub with size advantages over the likes of Kevin Love, Channing Frye and Tristan Thompson; an offensive rebounder who can extend possessions when the Raps’ guards don’t shoot so straight; and an attention-gatherer who could open up more room for Lowry, DeRozan and Joseph to operate.
Toronto needs to maximize every possession and avenue to create advantages against a more talented Cavaliers team. The possibility of getting Valanciunas back in the lineup and back in the middle — if he’s really healthy enough to go — could be a huge boost to their chances of going from frisky sparring partner to legitimate threat to topple the defending Eastern Conference champs.
More NBA coverage:
– – – – – – –
Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
Stay connected with Ball Don’t Lie on Twitter @YahooBDL, “Like” BDL on Facebook and follow Dunks Don’t Lie on Tumblr for year-round NBA talk, jokes and more.
