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Fred VanVleet Scores Toronto Raptors’ Franchise-High 54 Points

Fred VanVleet was the story of Tuesday’s game against the Orlando Magic. As a result, the Toronto Raptors won two-straight games and are now ninth in the Eastern Conference.

Toronto Raptors’ Fred VanVleet Scores 54 Points against the Orlando Magic

According to Tim Bontemps of ABC News, VanVleet became the only undrafted player in NBA history to score 54 points. Moses Malone was the previous record-holder with 53 points. He also passed four-time NBA All-Star DeMar DeRozan as having the most points in one game in franchise history.

DeRozan had 52 points against the Milwaukee Bucks on Jan. 1, 2018. VanVleet ranks second in Raptors’ history for most three-pointers made in one game with 11. This is what Kyle Lowry said about VanVleet’s accomplishment against the Magic, according to Bontemps:

“Tonight is really special, because it came from a kid who was undrafted, worked his way to an NBA player and an NBA starter, and possibly this year an All-Star and possibly an All-Defensive Player. That’s what makes it really special.”

Fred VanVleet finished the game 17-for-23 from the field, 11-for-14 from the three-point line, and 9-for-9 from the free-throw line. He also had three rebounds, two assists, three steals, and three blocks in 37 minutes.

Also, VanVleet is having a career-year in points and rebounds per game in the 2020-21 NBA season. He is averaging 20.4 points, 6.2 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.8 steals per game. He is also averaging a career-high in free-throw percentage, which is currently at 88.1 percent. It is remarkable how great VanVleet has become as a player. He went from an undrafted player to a possible NBA All-Star. He is probably one of the biggest, if not the biggest, pickup in Raptors franchise history.

Overview of VanVleet Scoring 54 Points against the Orlando Magic

The Raptors are now only a game back of seventh and eighth place in the Eastern Conference. This was after a dismal 1-6 start, a record in which only one NBA team rebounded to make the playoffs since 2001, according to Alexandro Fidanza of Raptors Rapture.

They will be looking to continue this momentum against the Brooklyn Nets on Friday. The Nets are currently second in the Eastern Conference with a 14-9 record. They will face familiar faces from previous NBA Playoff battles against Kyrie Irving and the 2019 NBA Finals against Kevin Durant.

https://twitter.com/Raptors/status/1356814430202458115

Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images

Raheem Bashir, Site Manager

Raheem Bashir, Site Manager

Raheem Bashir started blogging on a Gmail site called Blogger and has covered sporting events in rugby union/league and soccer. Since then he has become the Last Word on Sports writer for rugby, soccer, and previously basketball. He is also a member of the North American Soccer Reporters and The Rugby Union Writers’ Club. Raheem graduated from George Brown College with a Digital Media Marketing Post-Grad Certificate in 2019. From the same college, Raheem also did a post-grad certificate in Sport and Event Marketing in 2017. Lastly, he did an undergrad Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto in 2016.

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