Brooklyn Nets: Player grades from OT victory(!!) over Raptors
By Phil Watson
PF. Brooklyn Nets. RONDAE HOLLIS-JEFFERSON. B+. 36 MIN, 11 PTS, 5-for-14 (1-for-3), 4 REB (1 ORB), 2 AST, 2 PF, 1 STL, +1
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson drew the assignment of defending Kawhi Leonard, the leading scorer for the Toronto Raptors, and despite Leonard scoring 32 points, it’s hard to knock RHJ’s performance.
He made Leonard work for his shots, particularly inside the 3-point line, where Leonard was 5-for-15.
On the final possession of the game, Hollis-Jefferson made a terrific recovery after being screened above the break and cut off Leonard’s lane to the rim, forcing Leonard to give the ball up.
That in itself was a major win for the Brooklyn Nets, because Leonard is the guy you don’t want to let beat you. Instead, the ball went to Danny Green and then to Fred VanVleet on the wing, who missed a long 3-point attempt to end it.
Hollis-Jefferson continues to struggle offensively, but his defensive work helped key a strong effort by the entire club against one of the top offenses in the NBA.
C+. 36 MIN, 6 PTS, 2-for-8 (1-for-3), 9 REB (3 ORB), 2 AST, 3 PF, 3 TO, -1. SF/SG. Brooklyn Nets. JOE HARRIS
With Rondae Hollis-Jefferson covering Kawhi Leonard, Joe Harris was tasked with covering the much larger and longer Pascal Siakam and he did a solid job, even on a night when his shot wasn’t falling.
Siakam had 16 points, but was just 6-for-15 from the floor (he came in shooting nearly 63 percent).
Harris’ nine rebounds and three offensive boards were both season-highs as he did some serious work with box outs against the larger Raptors front line.