Ujiri was responding to Pierce's comments about how the Raptors didn't have the "it" factor to win a playoff series.
The Toronto Raptors host the Milwaukee Bucks in Game One of the NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs First Round on Saturday, start time at 5:30 PM ET, at Air Canada Centre.
Even the most ardent National Basketball Association heads have trouble watching every team on a consistent basis, so heading straight to the source for all-encompassing Raptors knowledge seemed like a prudent idea.
Antetokounmpo's layup to open the second quarter gave the Bucks a 10-point lead, but the Raptors hit back and a driving finger roll by DeRozan had Toronto up by three points.
"Playing well without Kyle and with Kyle (back) now, I think we finished the season strong". Maker chipped in three blocks and a steal on the defensive end of the floor, and one point he went step for step with Kyle Lowry on an isolation drive.
Antetokounmpo will be making his post-season debut, but Raptors coach Dwane Casey said what he lacks in experience, he'll make up for with hustle. "But we're out to play, and to prove that".
The second half of the game is when things got out of hand. Forward Serge Ibaka had 19 points and 14 rebounds.
Toronto was the #4 seed, just half a game ahead of #5 Atlanta during the All-Star break. Eventually they collectively nearly stopped going to the rim and started settling for long or contested jumpers and with little to no success. "There's a level of intensity they've brought", Ujiri said Friday. "That's what happened tonight".
When Antetokounmpo made a jumper with 2:38 to play, Milwaukee led by 17 points. This year's playoffs will also mark the sixth time the Bucks have entered postseason play as the No. 6 seed.
There may be a legitimate opportunity for Milwaukee to score almost at-will, with DeRozan disguised as an open gate to the hoop.
"I think we're in a good spot", VanVleet said.
Sinclair treble leads Celtic to dominant sixth straight title
A Scott Sinclair hat-trick plus a goal apiece for Stuart Armstrong and Patrick Roberts meant the party could start in Edinburgh. The word of the day turned out to be comfortable: Sinclair looks it, Rodgers is it, as he said, and so too are Celtic .
"I have no clue", DeRozan said. They shot just 36 per cent on the night. It's never ideal, but we have to bounce back and understand we make it hard on ourselves and come back and fight back even harder. "We know they're going to be more desperate". "They out-physicaled us, they out-screened us in every area that you could possibly talk about and that's what we showed the guys on film this morning", Casey said.
"I thought our defence was up to par this evening by just playing hard", Kidd said.
IN played a solid all-around game, matching the Cavs at both ends and even out-rebounding them.
Although it's just one game, the Bucks are already in the drivers seat of their first round matchup with Toronto.
Assign a shorter player on the 6-foot-11 Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks star can take advantage on the block. Toronto is 1-11 all-time in opening games, and this time, the Raps were bested by a young, lanky Milwaukee Bucks team that imposed their will from the opening tip.
Also gone with this loss was the built-in excuse of those poor performances being at least partly attributed to those frightful early starts.
Indiana Pacers' Paul George (13) grabs a pass ahead of Cleveland Cavaliers' J.R. Smith (5) in the first half in Game 1 of a first-round NBA basketball playoff series, Saturday, April 15, 2017, in Cleveland. There was no 12:30 start to blame.
And let's be real: Toronto is probably not the second-best team in the East.
"Taking the shots when he has them, turning the corner, being aggressive", Casey said of Lowry's challenge.
"We will figure it out. It's not a good feeling, but there are things that are correctable as far as our offence is concerend".
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