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VanVleet explains why he's likely to be sitting ahead of Raptors' playoffs

Adam Laskaris
Adam Laskaris
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Apr 6 2022, 4:02 pm
VanVleet explains why he's likely to be sitting ahead of Raptors' playoffs
John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

Toronto Raptors point guard Fred VanVleet could be sitting the rest of the regular season in preparation for the team’s playoff run.

Following a win over the Atlanta Hawks that officially clinched the Raptors’ spot in the 2022 NBA playoffs, Raptors head coach Nick Nurse told reporters the team was planning to get VanVleet “off his feet here for a couple days.”

For nearly two months, VanVleet has been dealing with an off-and-on knee injury that has caused him to sit for nine different games since early February.

For VanVleet, the decision over the last stretch of the season was simple: push to clinch a top-six berth and then earn a bit of extra rest.

“You have to make those decisions as an individual,” VanVleet said. “You’ve got to look at the schedule, the standings, and just kind of weigh everything. One of the things that factored into my decision-making process was to just go lay it on the line and see if we can get in and avoid that play-in. Because there is a six extra days [off] or whatever it is.”

The earliest Toronto could begin a best-of-seven playoff series is on April 16, after their season concludes on April 10.

VanVleet admits his performance of late wasn’t quite up to par with the levels that made him a first-time all-star this season. On Tuesday, VanVleet went just 4-for-21 from the field, including just 2-for-12 from the three-point line.

“It hasn’t been pretty all the time as we saw tonight,” he said. “But we’ve been playing some good basketball in the last couple of weeks.”

VanVleet did, however, hit a clutch three-pointer in the closing moments of the game that pushed Toronto to a 108-103 lead over Atlanta with just 1:04 left in the fourth quarter.

The Raptors have three games left in their regular season that VanVleet could be sitting for, beginning Thursday night against the Philadelphia 76ers.

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