A.J. Lawson

Surviving a battle against a postseason team with four starters sidelined in crunchtime isn’t for the faint of heart, but in a season defined by experiments, the Toronto Raptors were, fittingly, up to the test. One of many hidden gems scattered around Toronto’s rotation, A.J. Lawson uses it to his advantage, using a creative, looping inbounds design to break free of the Orlando Magic’s defense. Swift in squaring himself to the rim before Tristan da Silva can react, the first-year Raptor steadies into a cold-blooded trifecta, drawing celebratory pushes from his teammates after encouraging a three-point lead in the final 40 seconds. Like a musical album with no skippable songs, Toronto enjoyed a sequence that saw Lawson’s triple be followed by a game-winning triple from their No. 19 pick, allowing the Raptors to conquer Orlando for two different one-possession wins over a three-day span. Missing just one shot, Lawson produced a 13-point, two-rebound, two-block, three-triple tally on March 4, 2025.

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