TORONTO -- Cory Joseph couldn't resist some good-natured needling.
Toronto's backup point guard was baiting 35-year-old Luis Scola, the Raptors' oldest player, earlier this week.
"He was asking how many playoff games I have played, and I knew where he was going: he was just trying to show off that he had played more playoff games than me, being the oldest player on the team," Scola said, through a giant-sized grin.
Joseph made 41 post-season appearances with the perennially contending San Antonio Spurs, and that number stuck out when the Raptors acquired him in the off-season.
Now, Joseph could be a dribbling, shooting billboard for the value of post-season experience. He's been arguably the most solid player through Toronto's two playoff games, and will be expected to bring that hustle off the bench again when the Raptors play the Pacers in Game 3 on Thursday in Indiana.
"To give an example, DeMar DeRozan had (11 playoff games) and Cory's been in 41," coach Dwane Casey said. "He wasn't the key guy (in San Antonio) but he was there, participating. He's been through the wringer a few times. It's huge for us, Cory Joseph has been great, he's got the high motor, he can go from 0-100 off the bench quickly and he's one of our toughest guys. It's a huge luxury to have a guy like that."
Joseph has scored 34 points on 11-for-14 shooting over the two games, and missed just one of his 12 free throws. He's also doled out six assists, and grabbed four rebounds and a pair of steals.
Joking aside, Scola is as big a fan of the 24-year-old Joseph as any.
"He's young, but he's been in San Antonio for many years," Scola said. "That's like an advanced, speed-up school for playoff basketball, you know?"
"So for him it's natural."
Joseph's presence takes some of the weight off starting point guard Kyle Lowry, who struggled in Game 1 but bounced back with a solid Game 2.
"It's given me a chance to rest and play off the ball and roam a little more," Lowry said. "Even now the last couple of games, me being off the ball and him using pick and roll they haven't tagged off of me as hard and we've gotten in the paint. Having Cory has been unbelievable, man. . . he's going to continue to get better."
The Raptors signed Joseph to a four-year, US$30 million contract last summer. Joseph -- who as a kid would pretend he was Vince Carter while battling his brother Devoe on the driveway of the family's Pickering, Ont., home -- embraced the chance to play for his hometown team. He changed his jersey to No. 6 in honour of the Drake-coined nickname for Toronto.
The Toronto rapper has a line about Joseph in his diss track "Charged Up."
"We gon' make sure you get your bread, and you know the ropes," Drake raps, "I get a ring and I bring it home like I'm Cory Joe."
When Joseph won an NBA title with the Spurs in 2014, he took the Larry O'Brien Trophy up the CN Tower.
But if he's living the dream in this nailbiting series, you'd never know it. Joseph is as unflappable as they come. He's repeated the mantra numerous times: can't get too high, can't get too low.
"I don't worry about (the pressure of the playoffs), I really don't," Joseph said through his lopsided smile. "I don't worry about doing well, or doing bad. If the opportunity's given, I'm going to go out and play hard. Simple. Like I said, we're not going to war, we're not in the army. It's basketball. You go out, you play hard, and you can be satisfied with yourself."
The Raptors departed for Indianapolis on Wednesday afternoon with the series tied at one game apiece. The message has been about maintaining their intensity, and fighting the urge to relax after their Game 2 victory.
"No relief, we still have to win three more. . . we gave up home court advantage," Lowry said. "It wasn't relief. We didn't do our job. We did our job in Game 2, not Game 1. We have to go in there and be focused and execute on every single play."
The good news for the Raptors is they play well on the road, going 24-17 in the regular-season. The Pacers were 26-15 at their Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
The arena will be a sea of gold, as the Pacers are giving out gold T-shirts to fans. As of Wednesday evening there were still tickets to be had, for as little as US$16. Top-end tickets still available were going for $234.
