The Raptors have tried to work rotations and playing lineups to minimize the time centre Jonas Valanciunas has to spend chasing jump-shooting big men out to the three-point line.
It wasn’t something they had to worry about much Wednesday night.
Despite an NBA-wide move to have big men extend their shooting range, Charlotte’s Dwight Howard remains firmly anchored in the paint and Valanciunas didn’t have to look hard to find him.
Of the shots the six-foot-11, 265-pound Howard had taken this year before Wednesday’s game, 92 per cent (8.3 shots per game) came within 10 feet of the basket.