It’s a question we all asked ourselves after five games, win or lose: how important is Fred VanVleet to the Raptors’ success? As we witnessed tonight, the answer might not come down to numbers. VanVleet’s impact on Toronto this season has been about fit. He drives the bench lineup, he’s not a ball-dominant guy when paired with the starters. He just fits when he’s out there, and impacts the game in intangible ways.
In tonight’s Game 6 between Washington and Toronto, we saw how VanVleet can lift up the lineups he’s in, even when he’s not scoring in volume.