The Raptors have faced some odd circumstances over the past two years, but nobody had seen anything like what happened Saturday night, writes Josh Lewenberg of TSN. About four minutes before halftime in a game with the Pacers, emergency workers began clearing fans from a section of Scotiabank Arena after an electrical fire broke out in an overhead speaker. Eventually, all the spectators had to leave and the players finished the game without fans after a delay of about an hour.
“I started sneezing and that’s when I was like, ‘There’s something in the air,’” Precious Achiuwa said. “That’s when I heard about the fire.”
Achiuwa said several Pacers players talked about unusual it felt to play with no one in the stands, but the Raptors have plenty of experience with adjusting to strange surroundings, Lewenberg adds. They played their home games in Tampa, Florida, last season — sometimes with no fans at all and other times with a crowd that barely cared about them — and they’re the only team still operating under attendance restrictions.
“Just add it to the list,” coach Nick Nurse said after Saturday’s game. “Another weird night.”
There’s more from Toronto:
- The Raptors need to win as often as possible to avoid the play-in tournament, but they have to be careful with Fred VanVleet‘s aching right knee, says Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. VanVleet, who logged just 17 minutes on Saturday, doesn’t expect to be fully healthy for the postseason, but he’s doing as much as he can to get the knee ready. “I haven’t played consistently since before the All-Star (break),” he said. “With my knee, there’s not much I can do outside of playing to get back in shape. I’m trying to keep the load as low as possible on off-days. Just trying to ramp back up and get back in shape and find my spots.”
- Chris Boucher has turned his season around after a disastrous performance December 26 in Cleveland, observes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Boucher was the main option on offense that night for a team whose roster was depleted by health and safety protocols, but he made just 6-of-19 shots and was a minus-30 for the game. “It definitely changed my life, it changed my perspective,” Boucher said. “I realized I never want to be in that position again and [that] I just wanted to become a better player.”
- The Raptors believe VanVleet, Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby provide a reliable veteran foundation to lead them into the playoffs, according to Eric Koreen of The Athletic.
From the look of the score I’d thought the Pacers had evacuated the building mid 1st quarter.
You win this comment section!
Vanvleet didn’t sit out on Saturday. He played 17 minutes but sat out the post fire part of the game.
Good catch, that’s been fixed, thanks.
That’s a little suspicious, no?
Shooting the way the Raptors shot the ball in the first half is definitely a fire hazard.