Immanuel Quickley and the Toronto Raptors bounced back from their 54-point loss to the champion Boston Celtics with a 17-point (130-113) win against the Brooklyn Nets, snapping an 11-game losing streak. Scottie Barnes tallied a team-high 33 points and 13 rebounds, Gradey Dick finished 22 points, and Immanuel Quickley scored 21 points after missing 22 games with a left elbow injury.
Quickley also finished with 15 assists and four rebounds and was a plus-23 in the Raptors’ first win in 12 tries. All five Raptors starters scored double figures, including Ochai Agbaji (14) and Jakob Poeltl (12). After the victory, Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic discussed Quickley’s impressive double-double performance after missing 22 games, per St. Albert Gazette.
“He’s got a lot of skills, but he’s a point guard,” Rajakovic said. “When he’s bringing the ball up the floor, he is calling plays on the run, recognizing [the] situation. He’s my extension on the floor when he plays out there.”
Quickley’s long absence from basketball evoked the performance we saw in Wednesday’s win.
“When you have the game taken away from you for a long time, you’re a little bit more grateful. You miss it,” Quickley said. “Not that I took the game for granted before; I feel like I work pretty hard, but it’s just good to compete and be out there with your teammates and coaches.
“It’s just a different feeling than being on the sidelines.”
While the Raptors continue rebuilding, Immanuel Quickley wants to help plant the seeds of a winning culture in Toronto.
“We’re trying to build a culture: a culture of winning, enthusiasm, joy and unselfishness. I think that’s just where that comes from,” Quickley said. “Guys are really happy when other guys are playing well and then winning on top of that, which is the most important thing.”
Gradey Dick hits milestone in skid-snapping Raptors win
In his second NBA season, Raptors guard Gradey Dick scored his 1,000th point against the Nets. Dick scored 22 points on 7-of-17, including 4-of-8 from deep. He became the fourth-youngest player to reach the 1,000th point milestone in Raptors franchise history, per StatMuse.
He also finished with three steals on the defensive end of the floor after averaging 8.5 points on 42.5% shooting in his rookie season. This season, Dick is averaging 17.8 points on 42.1% shooting, 3.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. It’s an incredible leap from his rookie campaign as he continues to emerge within the team’s offense.
The Raptors will host the Magic on Friday.
The post Raptors’ Immanuel Quickley drops massive line after 22-game absence appeared first on ClutchPoints.
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