Raptors refuse to lose in Washington. And the road to the playoffs gets just a bit easier

There are few athletes in any sport anywhere on the planet who match Fred VanVleet’s level of self-confidence.

He knows he’s good, just knows his next shot is going in, and he’ll fire away when the opportunity presents itself.

It’s what has made him what he is — an NBA champion, all-star and the leader of his team — and it was never more obvious than Saturday night in Washington.

After a couple of misses — one on a shot that might have won the game in the final 15 seconds of the fourth quarter — VanVleet calmed himself and killed the Washington Wizards, draining a couple of huge three-pointers in overtime as the Raptors pulled out a 116-109 road victory.

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It was a delightfully entertaining game between teams in a tooth-and-nail fight for post-season spots and came down to the veteran Raptors guard making all the important shots. His corner three with 1:47 left put Toronto ahead for good; his shot from precisely the same spot just over a minute later extended their lead to four.

They were huge shots taken by an ultraconfident veteran who is never overwhelmed by the moment.

And for his team? VanVleet’s 25-point, 10-assist night didn’t exactly save the year, but it sure lessened the angst and stress around a squad still fighting for its play-in tournament life.

The win leaves Toronto in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, but a game ahead of the Wizards with a chance to win the season series and have the tiebreaker when they play in Toronto later this month. The Raptors remain within striking distance of eighth-place Atlanta and even seventh-place Miami, and put a bit more distance between themselves and 11th-place Chicago.

There are still 17 games left in the regular season, so it’s folly to even try to figure out what the final standings will look like, but Saturday’s win was a big one psychologically for the Raptors.

They believe they are far better than the 32-33 record indicates, and gutting out a tough road win — two nights after a blah performance in a loss to the same Wizards — has to at least confirm their suspicions.

And the way they achieved the win will make them feel good about themselves.

• Gary Trent Jr., who had his least productive game of the season Thursday, exploded for 26 points and carried the offence for most of the night.

• While their half-court defence was lacking at times, they were hyperaggressive on the ball: forcing 24 Wizards turnovers and turning them into 34 points, both Toronto season highs.

• VanVleet not only made big shots, he hounded Wizards star guard Bradley Beal with some exceptional fourth-quarter defence. Beal suffered through a 7-for-22 shooting night, was 2-for-7 from the floor in the fourth quarter and missed all four shots he took in the five-minute overtime.

• Primarily on the back of Trent’s work, the five-man bench unit did some heavy lifting to alleviate the stress on the starters. Chris Boucher was tremendous, Precious Achiuwa was good defensively but too skittish on offence, and Will Barton looked at home with some physical defence.

The win doesn’t mean the Raptors are home and cooled out, or even a certainty for the post-season.

But a loss, especially heading into three more road games this coming week, might have been devastating to a team that’s been up and down since the season began. Had the Raptors lost after leading by 13 with about nine minutes remaining, the repercussions would have been substantial.

They didn’t, though. VanVleet’s supreme confidence and leadership wouldn’t let them, Trent was the instant offence this team needs off the bench, and others were solid at the most critical junctures.

No one can predict what the next few weeks will bring for this group — anyone who thinks they know simply hasn’t been paying attention since November — but there had to be a sense of relief and accomplishment as they headed west for Monday night’s game in Denver.

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