Dwane Casey was a habitual line-stepper in the Raptors’ Game 4 win
The conference finals obviously feature a great deal of intensity from all participants, enough so that many often let their emotions carry them over the bounds of typical NBA standards and practices. Draymond Green’s kick to Steven Adams stands out as perhaps the worst possible such scenario (if you think it was intentional, at least), but more often these cases don’t become so controversial. They’re just an accepted thing when these players have so much on the line.
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Sometimes the coaches get involved, too. That’s what occurred with Toronto Raptors head honcho Dwane Casey on a few notable possessions late in Monday night’s critical Eastern Conference Finals Game 4 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The first came with roughly 1:15 remaining in regulation, when Casey did not enter the field of play but shadowed J.R. Smith with impressive lateral quickness before the Cavs gunner attempted a three-pointer over Bismack Biyombo:
Roughly 30 seconds later, Casey sprinted from the opposite bench and onto the court to make sure his team got a timeout:
Casey’s best play came in the final 10 seconds when he clapped at Kyrie Irving as he attempted to get the Cavs within one possession with a three-pointer:
Maybe we should have seen these moves coming. SB Nation’s Mike Prada told fans to look out for such defensive maneuvers from Casey and other coaches in a playoff preview published on April 15 (check out No. 35 on this list), and here we are in late May with a pretty notable example in one of the biggest games of the season. It’s difficult to say that Casey won the game for the Raptors with this habitual line-stepping, but this also isn’t something coaches are supposed to be able to do.
Whatever happens from here, Casey’s sideline activities should be a hot topic of conversation heading into Game 5. Just don’t expect any retaliatory stepovers from Cavs head coach Tyronn Lue. The word brings up bad memories for him.
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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
