Raptors Force Game 7 on Heels of RJ Barrett’s Miracle Game-Winner

It took a miraculous moment, but the Toronto Raptors have forced a Game 7 against the Cleveland Cavaliers after surrendering a 2-0 series lead to the Cavs to start. 

The moment, a last-second three-pointer by Toronto native RJ Barrett, first hit the heel of the rim and bounced in a nearly-perfect straight line upward before coming back down through the net. The suspenseful moment lifted Toronto over Cleveland by a score of 112-110. 

The bounce off of the back of the rim elevated a heart-stopping six feet and 10 inches, to the top of the shot clock, before coming back down with a little over one second remaining. 

For more on the shot and some clairvoyance from Darko Rajaković, Raptors Roundtable writer Joey Linn has more. 

The Raptors and Cavs will now decide their playoff futures on Sunday in a sudden-death Game 7. 

With the Western Conference semifinals now set, the Eastern Conference second round will finish taking shape by Sunday evening. This series, as well as the Detroit Pistons and Orlando Magic opening round, will close out on Sunday. Meanwhile the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers series will conclude Saturday night. 

The winner of Saturday’s matchup will face the New York Knicks, who just ended the Atlanta Hawks’ playoff hopes in dominant fashion.

The two Sunday winners will face one another in the semifinals. 

For the Raptors, hoping for miracle finishes won’t keep working for long. But their impressive resilience in the opening round has proven to be the true deciding factor thus far.