Playoffs

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Head Coach Nick Nurse speaks to the media ahead of Monday's game.

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Raptors Practice: Nick Nurse – April 25, 2022

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WASHINGTON (CP) – It didn't take very long for Kyle Lowry to show his built-up frustration on Sunday against Washington.

Lowry and his Toronto Raptors were swept from the post-season after a 125-94 loss in Game 4 against the Wizards.

The guard's emotion from throughout the series boiled over in the first quarter.

He protested an early foul on Paul Pierce by firing the basketball to a referee as he walked off the court after a time out. Lowry earned a technical foul and moments later was on the bench with a third personal foul just six minutes 54 seconds into the game.

The meltdown encapsulated the series for Lowry and Toronto, which dropped the first-round matchup 4-0.

"It was very unsatisfactory, to be honest," said Lowry. "At the end of the day, I've got to continue to get better and I will get better."

It was a miserable week for Lowry, who battled back spasms, an illness and a leg injury, but refused to concede he was hurt. His shot was off. Foul trouble was a constant problem. The Raptors' most dynamic player, who started at guard for the Eastern Conference in this year's All-Star game, was a shell of himself in the series.

Lowry scored a team-high 21 points on 8-of-15 shooting on Sunday. But the Raptors' defence was inconsistent, their offence sputtered and they couldn't rebound the shots they did miss.

"I've got no answers. It's a tough end for us," said guard Greivis Vasquez. "But as a team we've got to stay together. We'll see what happens this summer. We all, as individuals, have to get better. That really wasn't us the whole series."

The Wizards led 20-10 just 6:18 into the contest when Lowry was forced to the bench with that third foul. The lead grew to 20 midway through the second quarter and the game was never competitive in the second half as one Washington starter after another was pulled from the game to a standing ovation.

"I was surprised, but I kind of saw it coming," said Toronto coach Dwane Casey. "With how hard we played in the first game and overtime, emotionally I thought we were just drained. Once they hit us with the haymakers, we didn't have enough emotional fortitude to sustain it."

Washington set a franchise post-season record by making 15 of its 3-point shots. It had just five turnovers in the first half. Lowry picked up his fourth foul at 6:16 of the third quarter with the Raptors down 79-61 and later knocked over a chair on the Toronto bench in anger.

"When we play unselfish basketball we're a different team. That's just the facts," said Vasquez. "It's not defence or breakdowns or any (thing) like that. We've just got to play together and when we do that, we win. They did it."

A Raptors team that began the year 24-7 and had reached Game 7 in the first round last season – only to lose to the Brooklyn Nets when Lowry's buzzer-beating jumper was blocked by Pierce – was left wondering what went wrong.

"For us, we did have high expectations. But at the end of the day it was unsuccessful," said Lowry. "The way they came out, their level, they played extremely hard. We've got to learn from it. Regular season is completely different than the playoffs."

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Wizards Come Out Flying, Raptors Sent Packing In Game 4

WASHINGTON (CP) – Kyle Lowry stood with his feet in a tub of ice in the visiting locker room at Verizon Center, the stat sheet floating in the water below.

He stared at the numbers in disbelief and despair. Even 30 minutes after the Raptors' 106-99 loss to the Washington Wizards in Game 3 of an Eastern Conference quarter-final series, Lowry struggled to comprehend what's gone wrong.

Toronto's star guard shot 5-for-22 and finished with just 15 points. He fought through an illness that left his voice hoarse and audibly wheezed during a post-game interview with reporters.

In the end, the effort was better for the Raptors. But the result was the same. And now Toronto is on the brink of elimination from the NBA playoffs, trailing the Wizards 3-0. No NBA team has overcome a 3-0 series deficit. Game 4 of the best-of-seven series is Sunday evening in Washington.

"In this situation, we've never been in it," Lowry said. "It's like a Game 7 for us every single game starting Sunday. We're down 0-3 and everyone knows the history of it."

Another fast start gave the Raptors hope they could creep back into the series, but a 10-point first-half lead vanished even before the two teams headed to their locker rooms at halftime.

Point guard John Wall finished with 19 points and 15 assists to lead Washington and forward Marcin Gortat added 24 points and 12 rebounds.

DeMar DeRozan led Toronto with 32 points – including 22 in the first half.

DeRozan carried Toronto in the first quarter with 20 points. But Lowry shot 2-for-9 in the first half and foul trouble continued to hound him. Lowry had six points at halftime and two fouls.

After exiting the ice tub, Lowry spent another five minutes sitting on his locker room stool, head in his hands. He refused to use his illness as an excuse.

"I thought Kyle played his heart out," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. "Again, his shot didn't fall. That's basketball. He's our leader and he set the tone for us early. He played like the old Kyle – except his shot."

At one point in the third quarter Lowry had missed eight consecutive shots and DeRozan had missed 10 in a row.

The rest of the Raptors tried to make up the difference. Toronto took an 85-84 lead with 6:01 left in the fourth quarter after a dunk by Amir Johnson, who was one of the Raptors' few bright spots. He made 6-of-7 field goals and had a game-high 12 rebounds with three assists.

Toronto swept the regular-season series from the Wizards. The Raptors won in a blowout at Air Canada Centre on Nov. 7, 103-84, beat Washington in overtime on Jan. 31 at Verizon Center and won again, 95-93, at home on Feb. 11. DeRozan realizes, though, that this is a different time of year.

With Friday's game tied 88-88, Wizards reserve Otto Porter's breakthrough playoffs continued. With 4:20 to play, he sunk an open 3-pointer to put Washington back in front for good. Porter soon hit another.

"(Porter) has been the difference," Toronto reserve guard Greivis Vasquez said. "He is one of those players that is making his name in the playoffs."

Verizon Center finally exploded moments later when Raptors foil Paul Pierce made his own open 3-pointer to put the Wizards eight points clear with 1:58 left and put the game – and likely the series – out of reach.

"It's not over yet," Casey said. "We're on life support, but it's not over yet. There's no give up in this team. We haven't given up all year and we're going to continue to compete until someone tells us we can't compete any more."

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Raptors On The Brink After Falling In Washington

TORONTO (CP) – Another puzzling performance by point guard Kyle Lowry. A second dominant victory by the Washington Wizards.

And by the time the final buzzer sounded on Toronto's 117-106 loss to Washington on Tuesday, the same giddy fans that ushered the team onto the Air Canada Centre court with earsplitting applause were booing the struggling Raptors.

John Wall had 26 points and 17 assists, while Bradley Beal poured in 28 points to send the Wizards home to Washington with a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven playoff series.

"I know we can do better," said Raptors coach Dwane Casey. "I see us getting knocked down, going to the basket. I don't see their guys hitting the floor. I see them waltz in and waving at us, laughing at us going to the basket."

NBA Sixth Man Lou Williams and DeMar DeRozan led Toronto with 20 points apiece, Jonas Valanciunas had 15 points and 10 rebounds and Patrick Patterson finished with 15.

But the Raptors were hamstrung by another horrible night from Lowry, who finished with just six points and four assists, and sat large chunks of the game in foul trouble. In Game 1, he had seven points before fouling out.

"I dunno," Lowry said, when asked where he feels his game is at. "I'm not really getting any clean looks right now, and even missed a couple free throws. But I can't dictate my game with just offence, I can't even stay on the floor, I've got to find a way to stay on the floor right now."

Lowry sustained a left shin contusion at the 5:56 mark of the fourth quarter and did not return to the game. He will be re-evaluated Wednesday.

On the heels of a dreadful shooting performance in a 93-86 Game 1 loss, the Raptors knew Tuesday that they would be better. Problem was, Washington was as well. Much better.

The Raptors raced out to a 10-point lead and looked strong through the first quarter. But the Wizards roared back, and led 97-75 heading into the fourth quarter in front of a disgruntled crowd at the Air Canada Centre that included popular rapper Drake – wearing a leather bomber jacket bearing a huge Raptors logo.

There were thousands more unhappy fans outside, who braved the blustery weather to watch the game on the big screen in Maple Leaf Square.

"I feel for our fans. We have the greatest fans, passionate fans," Casey said. "And, that's where the pride factor has to come in. The guys have to go out and play with pride for the team first and then for our fans."

When the Wizards went up by 23 early in the fourth, dozens of fans headed for the exit. The Raptors would finally rally, cutting the deficit to 10 points on a three-pointer by Vasquez with 3:23 to go.

But that was as close as Toronto would get, and when Marcin Gortat put Washington back up by 13 with three minutes to play, the arena all but emptied.

"You think we're not frustrated?" Williams said of the fans' booing. "I understand they spend their money to come (watch) the game. We come here and prepare and work. Unfortunately it just hasn't gone our way."

"We have to play with passion," added Vasquez. "We have to play like we love the game. We've done it before. It's playoff time. Playoffs mean you have to play with everything you've got. I don't think we did."

The series has had some peripheral drama since before the first ball was thrown up, starting with Paul Pierce's comments about how the Raptors don't have the "it" factor.

Beal waded into the fray Tuesday night in a halftime television interview saying: "They think that we're some punks. They think they can push around. But we're not rolling."

They didn't. And for all the Raptors' talk the past two seasons about playing with a chip on their shoulders, the Wizards' seemed to have a bigger one.

"We have to still play with that chip on our shoulder because they're not going to back down, they're not going to stop coming at us," Beal said. "We have to do our best to protect our home court and close it out one game at a time."

The Raptors raced out to a 10-point lead on a step-back three by Terrence Ross less than four minutes into the game, and went into the second quarter leading 31-26.

Then disaster struck. Lowry had to sit less than three minutes into the second with three fouls, and the Wizards promptly went on a 25-8 run to head into the dressing room at halftime leading 60-49.

The misery continued in the third as the Wizards shot a whopping 77 per cent, ending the frame with five consecutive three-pointers.

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Raptors Dig Themselves 0-2 Hole Against Wizards

TORONTO (CP) – Masai Ujiri cursed him, Toronto Raptors fans jeered him. And Paul Pierce simply soaked it all in and drew strength from it. He loved it.

The Raptors' arch-rival spoiled the party – again – Saturday, scoring 20 points as the Washington Wizards earned an 93-86 overtime win over Toronto in the opener of their first-round playoff series.

"I don't mind playing the role of villain ... everybody's booing you, nobody likes you," Pierce said. "I embrace it. It fuels me truthfully."

Amir Johnson had 18 points to lead the Raptors, who rallied from a 15-point fourth-quarter deficit before falling apart in the extra period of a series that had drama long before the opening tipoff.

The drama came courtesy of Pierce. The 17-year NBA veteran blocked Kyle Lowry's final shot – and broke Toronto fans' hearts – in Game 7 last season to clinch the playoff series for Brooklyn. Then this week, he was quoted as saying the Raptors don't have "it."

Minutes before tipoff Saturday, Raptors GM Masai Ujiri, who was fined US$25,000 last year for his famous F-bomb about Brooklyn, addressed the thousands of fans outside in Maple Leaf Square, telling them: "People want me to say something about Paul Pierce, but we don't give a (expletive) about it!"

"Typical Ujiri," Pierce said, laughing. "You heard what he said last year when I was in Brooklyn.

"I couldn't really care less. I think I can play the psychological war a little bit better than him."

NBA commissioner Adam Silver, who was in attendance, wasn't thrilled with Ujiri's comments, telling TSN, "I've known Masai for 20 years, he's a very emotional guy but it's not appropriate in the league."

The peripheral drama wasn't matched on the floor in a sloppy game for both teams.

DeMar DeRozan finished with 15 points on 6-of-20 shooting, but had a team-high 11 rebounds. Patrick Patterson, Lou Williams and Greivis Vasquez had 10 apiece. Kyle Lowry finished with just seven points and eight rebounds before fouling out with 2:36 to play.

"For me personally, it's frustrating," Lowry said. "But our guys and our group, we're still fine. It's only one game."

Bradley Beal added 16 points for Washington.

Pierce, who'd averaged a career-low 11.9 points in the regular-season, shot 7-for-10, including 4-for-7 from three-point range, shrugging off the chorus of "Paul Pierce sucks!" that spontaneously erupted at times during the game.

"I've been in a lot of tough environments, this is right up there at the top," Pierce said. "Even last year when we won the series, I didn't want to come back to Toronto to be in this environment.

"But you've got to love these moments, you've got to love these type of buildings, they're excited about their team, it's one of the best crowds I've ever been a part of on the road, and I think it's something that really drives me."

The Raptors are 0-7 in opening first-round games. Last season, coach Dwane Casey blamed it on nerves with his young squad.

On Saturday, the Raptors – who'd beaten Washington in all three regular-season meetings – looked entirely out of sorts, and trailed by as many as 11 before going into the fourth down 65-56.

"There's still a lot of basketball to be played so it's not over, it's not doom and gloom," Casey said.

The Raptors shot 38 per cent on the afternoon, going just 6-for-29 from three-point range. The Wizards won the battle of the boards 61-48.

Washington would stretch its advantage to 15 points, virtually sucking the enthusiasm out of an Air Canada Centre that was a sea of white T-shirts, and included Kentucky coach John Calipari.

The Raptors abruptly woke up, and a three-pointer by Vasquez with six minutes to play brought Toronto to within six. Consecutive three-point bombs from Williams cut Washington's lead to two points with 2:55 to play.

Then with 26 seconds on the clock, Vasquez drilled a three to tie the game 82-82, shimmying and strutting up the court. His bucket capped a 23-8 run and sent the game into overtime.

The positive vibe was short-lived though, as Toronto went scoreless through four minutes of overtime until a DeRozan dunk with 30 seconds left.

The Raptors led 23-19 after the first but Pierce poured it on with 10 points in the second to give Washington a 46-42 half-time lead.

The Raptors shot a dreadful 28 per cent in a third quarter that saw the Wizards go ahead by 11 on a Wall jumper with 4:40 left in the frame.

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Raptors Drop Game One To Wizards In OT

You know that saying "the more things change, the more they stay the same"?

As the current season proceeded game by game, there were many similarities noted between the 2006/2007 Raptors season and the one we are excitedly immersed in now. And they both ended with fans wearing the Atlantic title splashed across their chests.

Then came the first round of playoffs. We know the numbers, but what about the in-arena effect? The sights and sounds? After splitting the season series (both seasons) it was the Raptors (3) vs. Nets (6). Adjust the cities and rosters but mirror the positioning, fans and series pace. Let's compare:

After the Raptors won game two in Toronto, the series was an even split as they travelled to Nets territory. Cue confetti.

Jason Kidd was a starter for the squad and currently lays a plan of attack from the sidelines.

The starting five for both teams looked a little like this...

Raptors
2007: Bosh, Parker, Ford, Nesterovic, Graham
2014: DeRozan, Lowry, Valanciunas, Ross, Johnson

Nets
2007: Carter, Kidd, Jefferson, Collins, Moore
2014: Pierce, Garnett, Williams, Livingston, Johnson

Courtside by the bench? Jay-Z in 2007 but people can expect the courtside scene to be similar in Game 3. (With his now wife Beyonce by his side)

Oh, the fans at home? From a sea of red in '07 to a white out in '14, they had the noise meter peaking both years.

During Game 2, Superfan Nav Bhatia sat next to Vince Carter's mother courtside in 2007. Now DeMar's fiance Kiara watches the playoffs beside him.

The list goes on. From the 'Salami and Cheese' calls of Chuck Swirsky to the 'Helloo!' hype of Jack Armstrong, the Raptor and Dance Pak stayed the same and the Air Canada Centre was home but now there's a big screen on the outside for crowds. And that is the one constant over the years; the fans...