905 continue historic start by steamrolling Celtics

The 905’s backcourt of Alijah Martin and Chucky Hepburn has straight up terrorized opposing bring-up ballhandlers, accosting them for the length of the court, making every millisecond of the process unbearable. They are itchy wool sweaters draped over opposing guards and wings alike causing endless discomfort.  

Martin was sure to credit his fellow guard before delving further into how he approaches picking up full court and playing pressure defence when asked about it after the game. 

“Shoutout Chucky, he’s doing an unbelievable job with that,” said Martin.  

“The whole emphasis is to make guys uncomfortable, get them out of their rhythm, hopefully speed up the offence, keep them out of rhythm as well like that,” he added. “People don’t like to play like that, and we do, so, with the Raptors, the 905, that’s our identity.” 

The rookie guard duo aren’t slouches on offence either. Martin was right behind Lawson with 20 points, making savvy cuts to the basket, driving hard and hurling himself at the rim and knocking down two-of-five 3s, bringing his efficiency on the season to 53%. Hepburn was held scoreless but led the 905 in assists for a second consecutive game with seven.  

He started the game with assists on back-to-back possessions, first boogying on Hayden Gray and hitting Olivier Sarr for a pick-and-pop 3. After Hepburn used an elevator screen, drove off the catch and lobbed Jonathan Mogbo. The 905 ran roughshod over the Celtics to start as intentional defensive rotations and offensive execution earned them an 11-2 run.  

Constricting pressure and help principles forced Maine to shoot over the top and the 905’s contingent with NBA experience trampled them going the other way in transition. Mogbo gained control navigating a crowded lane and made a deft finish. Lawson bolted on the break for back-to-back-to-back easy buckets, effortlessly gliding down the court.  

Maine managed to drive and kick for a couple corner 3s, but the 905’s fervent help and controlled closeouts were successful in minimizing paint touches.  

The 905 ran their delay series (they call it five) often, failing to generate anything the first time but setting up an open wing triple for Martin the second – Hepburn ran off a screen into a handoff (Chicago action), got downhill and kicked back out to David Roddy, who swung to Martin who caught and cashed.  

Roddy had a great stretch, making tough, contested, shots on a fader in the paint and a 3 from the corner. He also made a well-timed dig for a steal. Later the 905 deployed a funky lineup with Roddy at the five alongside Mogbo, Lawson, Martin and Hepburn. The de-facto centre posted up and made a skillful pass behind his back to Martin cutting baseline for a layup. Roddy finished with seven points, six rebounds and six assists, an all-around strong showing.  

Behind the fearsome defensive frontline of Hepburn and Martin, Mogbo was tremendous as a help defender, gumming up gaps and getting his hands on the ball constantly. He finished with seven stocks – three steals and four blocks – and had a ton of deflections.  

Three of Mogbo’s four blocks were in the third and the Celtics scored only 14 points in the quarter.  

Still, for all his activity on the defensive end, Mogbo was passive at times on offence, once passing up an opening in the lane for a potential dunk, instead making an ill-advised dump-off pass for his only turnover. But he learned from his mistake quickly. In the fourth quarter, he kept the ball on a handoff, made a deceptive behind-the-back dribble, and launched down the open lane for a big dunk. All three of Mogbo’s assists came within one minute – all touchdown passes on Lawson’s three straight runouts – causing Lawson to refer to him as “my quarterback,” post-game.  

But while Mogbo was a dependable pivot, Lawson played the role of superstar wide receiver. He’s a pure scorer and was in his purest form on Wednesday, swishing triples and front running for big dunks on the break.  

The 905 put an exclamation point on their drubbing of the Celtics to start the fourth. Mogbo threw down his monster jam, Martin blew past his defender for a smooth layup and Lawson and Martin each drove into the teeth of the defence and dimed one another for corner 3s. The 905 lead neared 40 and each team cleared their bench.  

It was another thorough shellacking by the 905. Now through three games, they have unquestionably been the most dominant team in the G League.