The Toronto Raptors used to have the luxury of relying on their bench.
Raptors bench mob was a force with players like Fred VanVleet, Delon Wright, Norman Powell, CJ Miles, Pascal Siakam and Jakob Poeltl.
Many of those players became key pieces of the Raptors organization, while Poeltl is now on his second run with the franchise.
Raptors fans saw shades of bench mob when the team took on the Detroit Pistons.
It was an impressive showing from the five-man bench unit of Chris Boucher, Jamison Battle, Jamal Shead, Bruno Fernando and Jonathan Mogbo:
Shout out to the Raptors bench tonight. Came up big despite the L. pic.twitter.com/DfON71Jx5F
— Luca Rosano (@lucarosano3) November 26, 2024
Fernando provided a boost of energy, while showing off his nice playmaking.
Battle had 9 points and 3 rebounds on 44 percent shooting from the field. It was a tough night for him shooting from deep as he went 1-for-5 from downtown, but overall he had a good outing.
Shead played hard defense, helping the Raptors significantly on that end. He faced struggles with his shooting, however, shooting just 33 percent from the field.
Mogbo played just 12 minutes, but his impact was felt as he continues to show off his versatility.
Boucher continues to be the best player from off the bench and has played his role perfectly. He’s having his best season since the Tampa season. He’s averaging 11.2 points in 18 minutes per contest.
With key bench pieces sidelined with injury in Ja’Kobe Walter, Bruce Brown and Kelly Olynyk, it’s nice to see other reserve players step up.
Once fully healthy, the Raptors will have solid depth moving forward.
Raptors share injury report ahead of matchup against Pelicans
Gradey Dick will once again be out on Nov. 27 against the New Orleans Pelicans.
The Toronto Raptors have ruled Dick out as he continues to deal with a left calf contusion. He suffered the injury on Nov. 24 against the Cleveland Cavaliers. This will mark the second straight game he will miss.
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