Pascal Siakam led the Toronto Raptors with 24 points, but he wasn't the only one to come up big in the team's comeback win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.
In addition to Fred VanVleet, who came close to his first triple-double of the season, Chris Boucher, Terence Davis and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson each scored double figures off the bench. Boucher provided the biggest punch with 15 points, tying his career-high, followed by 13 points from Davis and 10 points from Hollis-Jefferson.
After the game, VanVleet gave the three of them, plus Matt Thomas, who scored all five of his points in the first quarter, a shout out.
"We got a lot of tough guys. We got a lot of guys that got a lot of heart. And a lot of those guys that were playing tonight because of the injuries, they've got stuff to prove. I want to give a huge shout out to Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Terence Davis, Chris Boucher, Matt [Thomas] — all of those guys stepped up big for us and that's what it's all about, next man up mentality. Those guys were huge for us today."
Next man up mentality. #WeTheNorth pic.twitter.com/hb3E1zRw0X
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) November 11, 2019
Toronto was down two starters in Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka against the Lakers. Raptors head coach Nick Nurse said before the game that various players would get an opportunity in their absence. Boucher filled Ibaka's minutes off the bench, while Davis and Hollis-Jefferson earned themselves more minutes based on their play when they entered the game.
Hollis-Jefferson in particular was a surprise. Prior to Sunday's game, Hollis-Jefferson had appeared in only one game with the Raptors this season, logging four minutes in a blowout win over the Chicago Bulls. He played 15 minutes against the Lakers, adding three rebounds and two assists to his stat line.
The Raptors will need a repeat performance out of them on Monday, when they take on Kawhi Leonard and the LA Clippers.