Warriors stave off pesky Raptors in entertaining late-night tip

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Brandon Ingram has yet to play for the Raptors since his acquisition from the New Orleans Pelicans and is unlikely to make his debut because it makes no sense with the regular season about to expire.

RJ Barrett has been conveniently absent for reasons that merit his inactivity, whether they are based in fact or the stuff of fiction.

A few other setbacks appear to be legitimate.

Unless some miracle cure is developed, which seems highly dubious, the end to this draft-lottery centric season will be measured on what encouraging signs emerge when Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley are on the floor at the same time playing off each other and being able to take over games.

Not to overlook the team’s young guard, which has acquitted itself well, or the old guard in starting centre Jakob Poeltl, the truth is there isn’t much to look forward to, especially when the NCAA tournament better known as March Madness has tipped off, especially with Duke’s Copper Flagg, the projected consensus first overall pick, poised to steal the hoops spotlight.

Late Thursday night at the Chase Center in San Francisco, the Golden State Warriors played host to the Raptors as Toronto wrapped up its four-game Western trip.

Regardless of the health of Toronto’s roster and its lack of pedigree, credit the Raptors for once again coming out and providing a challenge, despite the inordinate amount of turnovers.

Outside of a blowout loss to the Phoenix Suns, the Raptors have been competitive during this stretch, winning games when the ideal outcome involved losing to better enhance their odds of selecting Flagg.

Against the emerging Warriors, who have looked liked like serious contenders with Jimmy Butler riding shotgun with Steph Curry, the Raptors played hard, played with poise and played with smarts for most of the night.

Curry was forced to exit the game when he fell hard to the floor, while Butler would record his third triple-double of the season, including his second with the Warriors.

On this night, the Butler did it in helping Golden State to its hard-fought 117-111 win as the Warriors improved to 16-2 with Playoff Jimmy.

Early on, Poeltl couldn’t extend his defence when matched up against Draymond Green, who was surprisingly proficient when launching three-pointers.

In fairness, it was unfair to have Poeltl guard Green when perhaps a better option would have been to put Barnes on the not-so green Green.

The game’s opening 18 minutes would see the hosts drain 13 three-balls with Green resorting to inner Curry.

Green would end the first half by netting 18 points, three off his career high, while the Curry-Butler tandem combined for 10 points as the Warriors took a 67-61 advantage into intermission.

In terms of entertainment, this was one late-night tip worthy of staying up to watch.

In terms of Barnes leading the way, there wasn’t much more one could ask from the face of the Raptors franchise.

When his isn’t settling for jumpers and focused on his mid-range game, Barnes is an unstoppable force.

In the game’s opening 24 minutes, Barnes did not miss a single shot heaved inside 20 feet, including his trips to the charity stripe.

Barnes and Quickley would combine for 30 points.

Had the Raptors been able to protect the basketball better and had the visitors been able to somehow neutralize Golden State’s three-point prowess, Toronto could have forged a lead at the break.

But compete they did.

When Quickley found Poeltl in transition in the third quarter, they exposed Golden State’s defence.

When he’s coming off screens and rolling to the rim, Poeltl possesses that soft touch to score at the rim.

Defensively, Barnes’ block at the rim was punctuated by a basket when the Raptors made their way up the floor. He was playing at a high level in leading the Raptors to their first lead since the opening quarter.

Quickley’s turnovers were as issue, but he did keep distributing the ball and looking to score when opportunities were presented. Once he found defensive footing, Poeltl was much better.

It was on defence that allowed the Raptors to take the lead and seriously threaten the Warriors.

The question was whether the Raptors could sustain their level of play and whether head coach Darko Rajakovic wanted to play his lone three legitimate starters in Barnes, Quickley and Poeltl on the floor for extended minutes.

Jamal Shead, as his identity, brought that physical edge on defence and got up on Curry.

What makes Curry so good and so lethal is his ability to play off ball, one of his many strengths.

Curry did take a hard fall to the floor late in the third quarter when attacking the rim. When he regained his composure, he was showered with chants of MVP. Favouring his back, Curry walked slowly to the locker room with the Warriors trailing the Raptors 88-83.

A Shead dunk gave the Raptors their largest lead on the night.

Toronto went a group that was scrappy with Barnes as the lone starter on the floor.

Not having Curry clearly had an impact, especially when one considers Curry had discovered his offence.

With about 1:10 left in third quarter, Golden State made its second three-pointer of the period, which speaks to how well Toronto defended and how well Rajakovic and his staff adjusted their schemes at halftime.

A big part of Toronto’s improved defence was its physicality.

Oddly enough, Golden State’s third three-ball of the quarter allowed it to take a slim lead into the final frame.

Green had the better of Poeltl in the opening half, but the roles would be reversed.

Following Poeltl’s uncontested dunk, it was announced Curry would not return, the victim of a pelvic contusion.

It was also announced the Warriors had attracted their 555th consecutive sellout.

The game remained tight and competitive.

The X-factor was Quinten Post, whose six makes came from distance in 22 minutes off the bench.

Jamison Battle did his part in providing a bench boost and perimeter presence.

His fourth three-pointer would allow the Raptors to retake the lead as the back and forth theme continued.

When the Warriors took a five-point lead with 4:06 remaining, Toronto’s only starter on the floor was Ochai Abaji.

Still, the Raptors would bounce back and would make it a one-possession game when Butler produced a critical late-game block, completing the sequence by burying both of his free throws.