TORONTO – Jamal Shead enjoyed a moment of appreciation from his former head coach on the University of Houston, Kelvin Sampson.
The second-year guard made one in every of the largest plays in Toronto’s 93-89 win in Game 4 on Sunday when he forced an eight-second violation against Cleveland Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell. The Raptors trailed by some extent with 40.8 seconds left.
Scottie Barnes stalked Mitchell within the backcourt with the clock running before Shead ran over and made a play on the ball, diving for it before it went out of bounds because the referees called the violation.
“Sam texted me, it was cool,” Shead said of his old coach. “He just said (he was) pleased with me, and we just each said culture. That’s something that was ingrained in me for 4 years there (on the University of Houston), so just getting that text from him and him letting me know that he’s pleased with me was awesome.”
“Diving on the ground is just not negotiable on the University of Houston,” he added. “We get taken out for that, we lose playing time for that. In order that’s pretty normal.”
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Shead and the Raptors evened the first-round playoff series at 2-2 with the win after dropping the primary two games in Cleveland. Toronto now heads on the road for Game 5 on Wednesday.
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Cleveland was heavily favoured entering the series and showed why within the opening two games, averaging 120.5 points and winning by a median margin of 11.5.
But Toronto turned things around, starting on the defensive end. The Raptors held the Cavaliers to 96.5 points per game, including a 126-104 win in Game 3. Mitchell went from averaging 31 points in the primary two games to 17.5 in Games 3 and 4, with co-star James Harden dropping from 25 to 18.5.
“It starts on defence for us,” Shead said. “I feel if we are able to work out the way to take our defence with us on the road, I feel we’ll figure every thing else out from there.”
Shead hasn’t been the just one who has turned a corner. Barnes has been the most effective player within the series, averaging a series-best 25.8 points together with 7.3 assists while taking over the project of guarding Mitchell and Harden.
R.J. Barrett of Mississauga, Ont., has averaged 24.3 points while also stepping up in an enormous way defensively.
“Got to, we now have no selection,” Barnes said when asked about bringing the identical intensity on the road. ” … We’ve been doing that the past two or three games. Just got to maintain doing it. Play with heart, intensity, focus, follow the sport plan, help one another out.”
Barnes is the one Raptor who was a part of the team’s last playoff appearance 4 years ago, when he was a rookie.
The 2-time all-star said he didn’t learn anything latest about his team by evening the series.
“I do know we play hard, we play aggressive, attempt to be physical. Just got to play our kind of basketball, our brand of basketball,” he said.
Nonetheless, head coach Darko Rajakovic offered his own view on what the playoffs and adversity can do to players.
“I feel every time you say what player is fabricated from, what team is fabricated from, I feel they’re at all times continually checking out that there’s more,” he said.
“Whatever was the most effective and the utmost day before that, when you reach that, you’re searching for brand new highs.”
Rajakovic said the series is showing key starters like Barrett, Barnes and Brandon Ingram are still evolving as players.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 28, 2026.
© 2026 The Canadian Press