OPINION: Raptors Must Dethrone King James At His Palace If They Want To Advance

The Eastern Conference Finals have been a tale of two cities.  Heading into tonight’s Game 6 in Toronto, the home team has won every game in the series, which Cleveland leads 3-2.  The Raptors have not just lost while in Ohio, they’ve been obliterated.  The average margin of defeat in their three losses on the road is 29 points.

Even if the Raptors can even the series with a victory tonight, they must conquer their house of horrors in Cleveland.  Their two All-Stars, Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan have played considerably worse at Quicken Loans Arena than the friendly confines of the Air Canada Centre.  During Games 3 and 4 at home, Lowry averaged 27.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, and four assists.  On the road, those averages drop to 10 points, 4.6 assists, and 4.3 rebounds.  Lowry’s turnovers are also alarmingly higher on the road, averaging 4.6 turnovers in road games to just 2.5 at home.  Shooting wise, Lowry is hitting just 33% of his shots in Cleveland compared to 64% at home.

For the most part DeRozan has shot well on the road, with the exception of Game 5.  Despite shooting 44%, the shooting guard is only averaging 18 points in Cleveland.  Those numbers are a stark contrast to his performance at home, where DeRozan put up 32 in both Games 3 and 4 while shooting 55% from the floor.

If Kevin Love can find some consistency, the Cavaliers will be tough to beat wherever they play, but Love has really struggled on the road in this series.  He managed just 13 total points in Games 3 and 4 combined and shot 5-23.  Cleveland needs his production to take pressure off of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, and to avoid relying on role players to produce big nights.  Channing Frye and J.R. Smith aren’t always going to get you 20-25 points a game, so having someone of Love’s caliber finding consistency would be a huge plus for the Cavs.

Should the Raptors pull through in Game 6, I still don’t think it will be enough to turn the tide in this series.  Toronto has only won two road games during the postseason and with the way Cleveland’s role players have produced at home, I just don’t see James letting a sixth straight NBA Finals appearance slipping from his grasp.  Toronto has the talent to upset the Cleveland, but it will take a lot more than talent to knock off the King and send him home.