Raptors force Game 7 with Barrett

The Raptors just dragged this series into the messiest, most fun place an NBA playoff matchup can go — Game 7. Toronto beat Cleveland 112-110 in overtime on Friday, May 1, after RJ Barrett launched a 29-footer that hit the back rim, flew almost absurdly high, and then dropped through with 1.2 seconds left. That shot saved Toronto’s season. It also turned a series that looked close to over into a full-pressure trip back to Cleveland on Sunday. (espn.com) ### What actually happened on the shot? Toronto was down one late in overtime and needed something clean, fast, and brave. Barrett got the look from the top of the arc, let it fly, and the ball took the kind of bounce that makes an arena freeze before it explodes. Evan Mobley got one last chance for Cleveland at the buzzer, but his answer missed, and that was it. (espn.com)tors were facing elimination. Lose Game 6 at home, and the season ends. Instead, Barrett forced a winner-take-all Game 7 and gave Toronto one more shot at a series comeback after falling behind 2-0. The home team has now won all six games in the series, which makes the next question obvious — can Toronto finally break through on the road? (espn.com)ptors to blowing it? Very. Toronto led by 11 in the fourth quarter and still had to scramble just to stay alive. In overtime, things looked shaky again when Jamal Shead missed a free throw that could have tied the game with 25.6 seconds left. Then Collin Murray-Boyles forced a Cleveland turnover, which gave Toronto the possession Barrett turned into playoff history. (espn.com)arrett? Scottie Barnes was the engine. He finished with 25 points and 14 assists, plus seven rebounds, three steals, and three blocks. Barrett and Ja’Kobe Walter each scored 24, and Murray-Boyles gave Toronto a huge bench lift with 17 points, seven rebounds, two steals, and three blocks. This was not one guy going supernova — it was Toronto surviving long enough for one guy to hit the shot everyone will remember. (espn.com) ### What went wrong for Cleveland? The simplest answer is shooting. Cleveland has been the better shooting team overall, but this series keeps swinging when the Cavaliers go cold from three. Donovan Mitchell scored 24, Mobley had 26 and 14 rebounds, and Cleveland still lost because the margins got tiny and the misses piled up at the worst time. Dean Wade missed three open corner threes late, and Mitchell went 2-for-10 from deep. (espn.com) ### Why are people bringing up Kawhi Leonard? Because Toronto playoff lore has one famous bouncing shot already. Barrett’s winner wasn’t identical — Kawhi’s came in a Game 7 in 2019 — but the visual was close enough that even Mitchell said that was his first thought. In a city that remembers every rim bounce from that run, this one landed instantly. (espn.com) now? It’s on Cleveland, even with home court. The Cavaliers earned Game 7 at Rocket Arena, and that matters because Toronto has not won a playoff game in Cleveland in this series or in its broader postseason history there. But the catch is simple — once a series gets to one game, all the comfort of being the better seed starts to feel thin. One weird bounce already changed everything. (espn.com) ### Bottom line? Toronto didn’t just survive. Toronto changed the emotional math of the series. Cleveland still gets Game 7 at home on Sunday night, but now the Raptors walk in believing the series belongs in chaos — and Barrett is the reason. (espn.com)