Toronto Raptors Injury Report Against Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 2 of ECQF

After a 126-113 Game 1 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Toronto Raptors need to change their approach for the second game in Rocket Arena. Their leading scorer on the season, two-time All-Star Brandon Ingram, had just 17 points in the contest and had the fourth-most field-goal attempts for his team, with nine. 

The biggest problem for the Raptors all season was their lack of offense, but this was not the case in Game 1. Toronto made 13 field goals from deep on 48% shooting and scored 37 points in the fourth quarter, highly regarded as their two biggest flaws. Saturday night’s contest was all about letting the Cavaliers get whatever they wanted on the offensive end. 

This has much to do with the impressive playoff experience of the superstar backcourt duo of seven-time All-Star Donovan Mitchell and 11-time All-Star James Harden. Mitchell led all scorers with 32 points, while the former league MVP added 22 points and 10 assists. While he may not have been an improvement defensively, having the leadership of starting point guard Immanuel Quickley, who missed Game 1 due to a right hamstring strain, would have made a difference in the approach to limiting the opposing stars. 

Going into Game 2, the official NBA injury report doesn’t produce any signs of good news for Toronto and its point guard. 

Quickley is again ruled as questionable for Monday night’s game in Cleveland. He initially had the same ruling for the playoff opener before ultimately being ruled out shortly before tip-off. 

The former New York Knick possesses some of the most playoff experience on this young Raptors team, and his leadership was missing on the court in Game 1. He can provide significant stability when the Raptors are struggling to adapt to stagnant half-court offense or poor defensive schemes. 

Even head coach Darko Rajakovic endured his first playoff game as a head coach on Saturday night, so any experience is needed to get the Raptors on track in this series. While the point guard is only 26, guys like him and veteran guard Garrett Temple can provide some guidance from off the court to help the youthful coaching staff. 

If Quickley is out, there may be a change in the starting lineup for Game 2. It was anticipated that second-year guard Ja’Kobe Walter may replace him in the starting lineup for Game 1, but instead, it was the other second-year guard, Jamal Shead, who was given the nod. While Shead didn’t supply much playmaking, he did all he could from a scoring standpoint, contributing 17 points, including 5-for-6 shooting from three-point range. 

Another option is standout rookie lottery pick Collin Murray-Boyles, who shone in his playoff debut. In 20 minutes off the bench, the backup center added 14 points on 7-for-8 shooting. Having only played one less mintue than starting center Jakob Poeltl, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the two switch places based on matchups with opposing bigs, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen.