Right in line with what’s been an off-season practically lifted from the pages of a Hollywood screenplay, the NBA put on a show in releasing its schedule for the 2014-15 season on Wednesday (no, literally- it happened during a one-hour live TV special that was just about as enthralling as you can imagine, which is to say, not at all. But that didn’t stop NBATV Canada from airing it twice, back-to-back!).
Among the league’s marquee games are meetings between the defending champion San Antonio Spurs and Dallas Mavericks on opening night, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls on Halloween, and the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers to cap off the annual Christmas Day slate of games.
For a limited time get Sportsnet Magazine’s digital edition free for 60 days. Visit Appstore/RogersMagazines to see what you’re missing out on.
While they won’t be playing on Christmas, the Toronto Raptors will play their fair share of games broadcasted nationally across the continent during a season that already figures to feature no shortage of interesting matchups for Canada’s lone NBA franchise. So without further ado, here’s everything you needed to know about the Raptors’ schedule (but were afraid to ask):
Opening Night: Oct. 29 vs. Atlanta Hawks- A winnable, yet sure to be close contest to start off the season. Toronto split the season series 2-2 versus Atlanta, and this will mark new Raptors’ guard (and surefire fan favourite) Lou Williams’ first tilt against his former club.
The Right Foot: Unlike last season, the Raptors should walk out of the first month of the season with a winning record- nine of their first 12 games are at home, while seven of the first 17 games of the season are against teams expected to wind up comfortably in the lottery (Magic, Celtics, Sixers, Bucks, and Lakers).
Waiting For Wiggins: If the number one pick and proud son of the City Above Toronto (that would be Vaughan, for the uninitiated) is traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves as expected, Raptors fans will have to wait until March 18 before seeing Wiggins play in front of his “home” crowd at the Air Canada Centre.
In The Spotlight: It should come as no surprise that, with an exciting roster and the league-wide buzz generated by the madness of Jurassic Park during the playoffs, there is more interest in this team than we’ve seen since the Vince Carter days. To wit: Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan & Co. will appear in a whopping nine games televised nationally stateside (one on TNT vs. the Bulls, three on ESPN, and five on NBATV), the most in recent memory.
TGIF: With 19 total games, Friday night’s will be the most common day for Raptors games. 19 is also the amount of back-to-back contests for Canada’s lone NBA franchise.
Notable matchups
@ Cleveland Nov.22: The first matchup versus LeBron James, Tristan Thompson, Kyrie Irving, and Kevin Love (*not technically as of yet, but c’mon). A few games later, on Dec.5, the Cavs will make the trip to Toronto for their first appearance at the Air Canada Centre.
@ Sacramento Dec.2: There are some familiar faces on the Kings in Rudy Gay, Aaron Gray, and former assistant coach Micah Nori, plus now a new wrinkle: a chance to get a good look at Mississauga’s own Nik Stauskas, the Kings lottery pick in 2014.
Vs. Brooklyn Dec.17: It’s their first game against last year’s playoff opponents, who have since lost Paul Pierce (signed with the Wizards in off-season), but are expected to have a healthy Brook Lopez back manning the post.
@L.A. Clippers Dec.27: These two played a wild game in Toronto last season, and if they can combine for anything close to that contest in their first meeting of 2014-15, this game will be wall-to-wall entertainment and a high-scoring affair. In two meetings last season, the Clippers averaged 122 PPG, most of any Raptors opponent. Toronto’s negative point-differential of -11.5 versus L.A was also their worst mark of the season.
The Clippers game kicks off a West Coast trip featuring five offences that lit up the Raptors last year (Clips, Nuggets, Trail-Blazers, Warriors, and Suns).
@Philadelphia Jan.23: Not expected to be a threat in terms of playoff seeding, the Sixers are expected to boast Brampton’s Anthony Bennett on their roster, along with a healthy Nerlens Noel, who, along with a healthy Rajon Rondo in Boston, and Jose Calderon’s turn as a New York Knick, should help make the Atlantic Division a more compelling, if not more challenging, group of opponents in 2014-15.
Vs. San Antonio Feb 8: The champs come to town. Raptors third-year swingman Terrence Ross averaged 18.5 ppg vs San Antonio last season, his highest scoring mark of any opponent (excluding the Clippers- numbers are inflated as a result of his 51 point game vs. the Clips in Toronto).
Vs. L.A. Lakers Mar 27: Catch Kobe in town while you still can. Also, enjoy the Amir Johnson Show- last season he averaged 22 PPG against his hometown team.
Vs. Charlotte Apr 15: Whether the last game of the season weighs heavily on things like playoff seeding or is a relatively meaningless affair, don’t expect it to come easy for the Raptors- last season they were 0-3 against a team expected to challenge them in the standings. Jonas Valanciunas averaged just 7.3 rpg against Charlotte in 2013-14, easily his worst mark against an Eastern conference foe, and the Hornets will only be better on the boards after drafting big man Noah Vonleh and signing Lance Stephenson, arguably the best rebounding guard around today.
