The Toronto Raptors appeared like they might get eliminated in the first round of the playoffs courtesy of the higher-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers. A must-win Game 6 ended up going into overtime between the two postseason squads.
In that extra session, it once again seemed the Cavs were on the verge of securing a win as they pulled ahead with very little time remaining. However, RJ Barrett became a hero with a game-winning shot much like Tyrese Haliburton had in last year’s NBA Playoffs.
He shot a 29-foot three-pointer and everyone watched as the ball bounced high off the rim and then fell straight down into the hoop for a two-point Raptors lead. That brought plenty of celebration among the Toronto fans and Barrett’s teammates, as it helped them force a Game 7 at Cleveland.
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However, Barrett seems ready to wiseley move past his major playoff highlight, as he knows the time to celebrate isn’t there yet. He spoke about his game-winner, also talking about the task at hand against the Cavs on Sunday.
“Not to take anything away from the shot, very thankful, it was a great shot. I was really happy in the moment, but we gotta move on,” he told reporters in Cleveland. “Gotta win tonight. The shot doesn’t really mean much if we don’t get the job done here tonight.”
The postseason has been full of memorable moments and massive wins for teams, but players know it’s meaningless if they don’t step up and get it done when it matters most.
The Cavaliers probably feel the same, especially since they’ll be in front of their excited fans for Game 7 at their home arena. That bodes well for them, as they went 27-14 at Rocket Arena in the regular season, and thus far, the home teams have won every game in this Eastern Conference series.
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According to Statmuse, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander may have hit the most game-winning shots this past regular season. He recently won the NBA Clutch Player Award due to his clutch abilities when his team needed him most.
Luka Doncic is also on StatMuse’s game-winners list for last season, along with several other players, including the San Antonio Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama, and Barrett’s Raptors teammate, Brandon Ingram.
That seems like great news for this Toronto team, especially if this game is close down the stretch and they need to call upon a player to make another big game-winner. Barrett and Ingram are more than capable of taking and making that clutch shot in a high-pressure situation.
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