4 Takeaways From Toronto's 110-109 Loss to the Nuggets

The Toronto Raptors saw their winning streak snapped by Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets despite another heroic performance from Pascal Siakam

Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

The Toronto Raptors' eight-game winning streak came to an end 110-109 Saturday night in a tough battle against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. Here are the biggest takeaways from the game.

1. Raptors Have Their Own MVP

Jokic may be the league MVP, but Pascal Siakam was every bit his equal Saturday night. The Nuggets simply had no answer for him, even as when they turned up the pressure on him with double teams and blitzes, he continued to get to his spots either at the rim or in his favorite pull-up spot. He was nearly perfect within the paint, using his floater to burn Denver's soft interior defense, before stepping out behind the arc where he was 3-for-7 from the game, his most three-point attempts all season.

"He was at a high level tonight," Nuggets coach Michael Malone said of Siakam. "Obviously, he was incredible, 35 (points), seven assists, 10 rebounds, two steals, he impacted the game in so many ways. Even late, for a guy like that who’s having a game, to make the play to get Freddy VanVleet the three, he’s scoring, he’s playmaking, he’s rebounding, he’s defending, and that’s why he’s been an all-star in this league. He has that type of talent and potential, so, yeah, he’s a helluva player."

Toronto ran the same exact play twice in the final minute, having VanVleet fake a screen before slipping out behind the three-point line as Siakam began driving the lane. On the first possession, VanVleet nailed a catch-and-shoot three-pointer to pull the Raptors within one. Naturally, Toronto figured Denver would defend it differently the second time around, but with the way Siakam had played all night, the Nuggets couldn't risk leaving him open for a second. Denver again vacated VanVleet, but this time he didn't quite grip the ball properly and his shot hit the back of the rim.

"I wasn’t really expecting (Aaron) Gordon to leave. I don’t think Pascal was either," VanVleet said. "He made a great pass and I just didn’t catch it as well as I wanted to. That’s the game. It’s a game of inches. If I went back a few it probably would have been all net like the one before.”

2. Jokic Feated on Undersized Raptors Early

Toronto's unorthodox, versatile, 6-foot-8(ish) roster works against most teams these days. There are only a handful of superstar bigs in the NBA. You can probably count them on one hand. But against those teams, the Raptors are going to struggle.

The Raptors threw everyone they could at the 6-foot-11 reigning NBA MVP in the first half. OG Anunoby got the first crack at Jokic and was quickly dinged with two fouls. When Siakam came to double, Jokic either found the open man with a kick-out pass or muscled his way through the help for a bucket. Neither Precious Achiuwa, Khem Birch, nor Chris Boucher had any answer for the big man who tallied 21 points in the first half on 7-for-9 shooting.

Toronto did, however, find more success in the second half by denying Jokic the ball and forcing the Nuggets to win with their secondary players. Yet Jokic found a way to shake loose late in the fourth assisting on a crucial three-pointer from Bones Hyland before he grabbed his own rebound for a put-back layup to put the Nuggets up five.

3. Rare Standout Game from Bench

Toronto's bench is never going to light it up offensively, but if the group can hold its own on the defensive end nobody is going to complain. That's what made Saturday's game so special for the Raptors who saw all four reserves contribute valuable defensive minutes. Birch was solid in the second half against Jokic, Dalano Banton's tempo created chaos and forced a turnover, and both Achiuwa and Boucher were solid in their limited minutes. All four bench players finished the game with a positive plus-minus.

4. Thad Young Is Out of the Rotation

I'll have more on Thad Young tomorrow, but suffice it to say he was brought in to be a veteran presence rather than be a minutes eater or difference-maker for Toronto.

He did not play Saturday night as Nurse opted instead to stick with his normal rotation. That might change when Young gets more accustomed to Toronto's system, but don't count on it.

"I’m not really worried offensively. I think he’ll get to that point. It will probably take him a minute to catch on to all of the defensive things we do," Nurse said pre-game.

Up Next: New Orleans Pelicans

The Raptors will have the day off before heading down to New Orleans to take on the new-look Pelicans with CJ McCollum on Monday night at 8 p.m. ET.