TAMPA, FLORIDA - MARCH 03: Assistant head coach Sergio Scariolo of the Toronto Raptors (Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)
Of all the many weird quirks that this most recent Toronto Raptors season threw at fans, the brief 3-game stretch in which head coach Nick Nurse and almost every player with a pulse were ruled inactive due to the league’s health and safety protocols has to rank up there. Assistant coach Sergio Scariolo had to step in and save the day.
Scariolo went 1-2 while leading a Raptors team that was severely lacking depth, and this stretch crystallized the notion that he was a very important asset to have around on the bench.