The Cleveland Cavaliers and Collin Sexton caught a bit of a break going into tonight’s game versus the Toronto Raptors.
The Cleveland Cavaliers and Collin Sexton are not going to have an easy matchup against the Toronto Raptors tonight; Toronto is 24-9 and currently has the best record in the NBA. This game could feature a closer score than one would have initially thought, though, because the Raptors will reportedly be without star point guard Kyle Lowry, according to Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor.
Lowry is day-to-day with a reported thigh injury, and that kept him out of Wednesday’s win over the Indiana Pacers.
I can imagine him being ruled out again brought a sigh of relief for Sexton, who would have a tough assignment with Lowry going at him a number of times on both ends in the game.
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Despite Lowry’s scoring being down some this year with him having just 14.2 points per game (his lowest scoring output since 2012-13, per Basketball Reference), his strength, basketball IQ and shooting ability still makes him one of the toughest matchups Sexton will have this year.
Lowry’s playmaking and team-first style has meshed well with new Raptor Kawhi Leonard, and that’s evidenced by Lowry averaging a career-high 10.0 assists per game. Lowry has managed games really well this year for a well-balanced Toronto team, and with him out, the Cleveland Cavaliers could have a puncher’s chance in this one.
Granted, backup Fred VanVleet is no slouch as Toronto’s backup point man, and he’s given the Cavs problems in their two previous meetings this season. The odds will be stacked against Cleveland in this one, especially with their inferior bigs and wings going against the likes of Leonard, the revelation that has been Pascal Siakam, Serge Ibaka and Jonas Valanciunas.
Sexton had a rough matchup against the uber-talented Kemba Walker in the Cavs’ last game at the Charlotte Hornets. In this next game, not having to deal with Lowry handling the ball in the pick-and-roll and coming off screens should enable Sexton to be more sound defensively, and be more effective on the offensive end.