Toronto's first NBA Cup win came from an unlikely source. With Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley sidelined, Alijah Martin scored 27 points off the bench and Jamal Shead delivered 16 assists as the Raptors overturned a nine-point half-time deficit to beat Milwaukee 121–107 on Friday night (6 November, US time). The result gave Toronto an opening victory in East Group A and, more importantly, showed how much its attack can change when its supporting guards take control.
Milwaukee had the better of the opening exchanges. The Bucks attacked the offensive glass and led 60–51 at half-time, with Toronto repeatedly having to work back from deficits. The Raptors didn't find a clean offensive rhythm early, but they kept enough pressure on Milwaukee to stay within reach. The official NBA game record confirms the Cup fixture; Toronto's comeback was built over the second half rather than on a single spectacular possession.
Shead's passing was the hinge. He finished with 10 points and 16 assists, keeping the ball moving towards cutters and bigs rather than forcing himself into a scoring contest. Jakob Poeltl benefited from that service, producing 19 points and 11 rebounds. The combination gave Toronto an inside outlet while its guards searched for space beyond the arc. When the Raptors needed a steadier way to score, Shead could create a chance without demanding the final shot.
Martin supplied those shots. His 27 points matched RJ Barrett's team-high total, and his perimeter scoring helped Toronto wrestle back the lead in the third quarter and stretch it in the fourth. A bench scorer changing a Cup game is more than a pleasant subplot when two regular starters are missing. Martin gave Toronto an extra offensive gear precisely when Milwaukee was trying to contain its remaining established options.
The comeback wasn't seamless. Toronto had trailed by 14 during the first half, and Milwaukee briefly responded after surrendering the lead in the third. But the Raptors finished with the stronger defence and sharper decisions, pulling away to a 14-point victory. The contemporaneous Raptors HQ match report details the shift in momentum and the contributions from Barrett, Poeltl and rookie Collin Murray-Boyles.
There are useful rotation implications here. Shead has made a persuasive case for more responsibility as a distributor when Toronto needs organisation; Martin has shown he can change a game without starting it. Barnes and Quickley's availability will affect the eventual shape of those minutes, but Toronto now has a concrete example of a second-unit guard pairing producing both creation and scoring under Cup pressure. That matters to a team trying to win games without relying on one offensive formula.
The Cup also rewards margin, which made Toronto's late separation worthwhile. What began as a difficult road night ended with the Raptors winning by 14, rather than merely escaping with a narrow result. Their next challenge is to turn this kind of collective response into a more reliable starting point, so they don't need another second-half rescue to unlock the same attacking balance.
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