Fred VanVleet defied the odds.
No, not when he rose to stardom as a point guard at Wichita State. No, not when he went undrafted in 2016, signed a contract with the Raptors and eventually worked his way up from the D-League onto the main roster. No, not even when he emerged as a permanent fixture with Toronto's "Bench Mob."
NBA FINALS PREVIEW:
Predicting Warriors vs. Raptors series
VanVleet's biggest upset was becoming a more productive human being after the birth of his second child. On May 20, VanVleet traveled to his hometown of Rockford, Ill., to welcome Fred Jr. into the world. (He also has a daughter, Sanaa.) He returned to Toronto the next day for Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals — and he absolutely torched the Bucks from then on.
Fred Sr. broke out of a prolonged slump with the greatest three-game shooting stretch in NBA playoff history, hitting 14-of-17 from 3-point range (82.4 percent) in Games 4-6. VanVleet had only made eight 3-pointers in his previous 15 playoff games (five against the Magic in the first round, one against the 76ers in the second round and two in Games 1-3 against the Bucks).
| VanVleet playoff stats | Games | PPG | FG-FGA | 3PT FG-3PT FGA |
| Before birth of son | 15 | 4.0 | 1.3-5.2 (25.6%) | 0.5-2.7 (19.5%) |
| After birth of son | 3 | 16.0 | 5.7-8.3 (68.0%) | 4.7-5.7 (82.4%) |
And VanVleet didn't just score empty points in blowouts. The Raptors needed that punch off the bench — at least some sort of threat other than Kawhi Leonard — to eliminate the top-seeded Bucks.
In a tightly-contested series dominated by conversations about Leonard and Giannis Antetokounmpo, VanVleet's level of marksmanship proved to be the difference.
Final tally:
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) May 26, 2019
When Giannis and Kawhi shared the floor, the two teams tied 445-445.
When Giannis was on the floor and FVV was on the bench, the Bucks were +40.
When Giannis was on the floor and FVV was on the court, the Bucks were outscored by 30 points.
Over the final three games of the Eastern Conference finals, VanVleet finished an astounding plus-65 in 96 minutes. The Raptors won those games by a total of 30 points.
The term "X-factor" can often be overused when referring to any role player in a game with major consequences, but VanVleet truly was the variable that tipped the scale in Toronto's favor.
Now VanVleet will look to carry that hot streak into the NBA Finals against the Warriors. Game 1 isn't until Thursday night, so hopefully VanVleet's son will let the guy get some sleep. He's had a busy week.
