Nets: Key takeaways from a wild Game 1 battle with Raptors

The Brooklyn Nets fought back from a wild deficit against the Raptors in Game 1.

It wasn’t enough, but it sure was something to watch the Brooklyn Nets claw back (once again) in Game 1 against the Toronto Raptors.

Without the raucous din of their dinosaur-themed home court advantage, the Raps were barely able to hold off Brooklyn’s charge in the third quarter.

Frankly, you’re not going to believe this — the Nets fell down 33 points, and did not quit! What were the odds?

The odds were high, folks.

Buoyed by Caris LeVert and Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot’s near-automatic scoring, the Nets relied on their steadiest hands to feed Joe Harris and Garrett Temple. There was also quite a bit of Jarrett Allen-led banging, as well as a very impressive buzzer beater to keep things at nine entering the fourth.

Unfortunately, the FVV-led Raptors offense, also marked by Pascal Siakam barreling out of control and scoring amid quite a bit of uncalled contact, managed to emerge victorious in the end, expanding the deficit rather quickly once the horn sounded.

Yes, LeVert’s scoring was valuable in this one once again, but in many ways, it was his playmaking that really stood out.

Caris LeVert became a facilitator for the Nets on Monday.

LeVert has looked every bit of a third star in the Bubble, but his very few critics have focused on the fact that he’s thrived as a scorer with the ball in his hands. What happens when Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant run the show, eh? What say you then?

Almost as if he felt he needed to make the case for himself one more time, LeVert showed off his assist skills, deferring as often as he shook defenders in the second half.

For critics worried he’ll be disengaged when he’s not the beneficiary of crunch time attempts, Game 1 should stand as Exhibit A of his total competence.

And let’s not forget Luwawu-Cabarrot, who has been automatic since the restart, and will be making only $1.8 million to return for the Nets next year.

Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot is coming back to the Nets next year as a bargain.

TLC finished this one with another 26 points and 7 boards on 9-of-13 shooting (6-of-9 from deep).

Over, and over, and over again, Luwawu-Cabarrot continues to ensure he’ll be a wing scorer who can legitimately take the burden from Durant when the second unit needs to take the court.

Jamal Crawford was an adorable idea, but Luwawu-Cabarrot is sustainable. With the Nets needing to fill out their back end with genuine scorers, the Frenchman is proving he can be the best of that genre.

Consider at least a few questions answered for 2020-21, despite the Game 1 comeback loss.

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