Top spot in the East is still up for grabs
The Raptors have had the East’s second seed wrapped up for what seems like an eternity, with first-place Cleveland holding a fairly tight grip on their spot atop the standings.
But as the NBA season swiftly draws to a close, there’s a chance that could all change.
The Raps currently sit two games back from Cleveland (that, too, seems like its been the case since forever) and both clubs have two games remaining on their schedule. Toronto won the season series vs. Cleveland 2-1, meaning they own the tie-break thanks in large part to Kyle Lowry’s heroics:
That means that a pair of Cavs losses coupled with a pair of Raptor wins would result in Toronto finishing the season as the East’s no.1 seed, what would be a first for the franchise. What the Raptors have going in their favour is that their final two games happen to come against the two worst teams in the conference, Philadelphia and Brooklyn.
Cleveland’s final two games? Atlanta and Detroit, two playoff teams still jockeying for preferable seeding. The Cavs could be resting their stars during one or both of the contests, leaving the door that much wider for the Raptors to overtake them. It’s not likely, but certainly beyond plausible.
But is that a good thing? Sure, it’s a bona fide accomplish to finish atop the division, especially considering next to nobody would have forecasted that before the season began (not to mention a nice feather in the cap of a 2015-16 campaign that’s already seen the Raptors set a new franchise benchmark in total wins with 54 and counting).
But as Raptors broadcaster Paul Jones put it to me this morning: “You think there’s pressure now???”
Part of the reason there’s so much intrigue and anticipation around this year’s playoffs is that we still don’t know how this group will perform under the pressure’s of the post-season. We know how they fared last year when the lights burned brightest, and with enough anxiety built around getting out of the first round, the added weight of being named the best regular season team in the conference isn’t helping erase any of that.
The promise of playing time for the 905 Crew
Ok, Norm Powell, he of the 15 consecutive starts (and counting) and 28 minute-per-game averages during that stretch is now officially exempt from this conversation. But for the likes of Lucas Nogueira, Delon Wright, and Bruno Caboclo? The next two games are as good an opportunity to give the Raptors’ young players extended burn as any.
Still, despite holding a comfortable spot in the standings and how critical it is for Toronto’s stars to enter the playoffs at as close to 100% health as is possible this time of year, those three haven’t seen the floor much down the stretch.
Wright has averaged over 20 minutes per game in relief in his last two appearances, but has been inactive during three of his last five games.
Nogueira’s play has been more sporadic, seeing action in only six of the Raptors’ last 20 games, at less than seven minutes per.
And then there’s Caboclo, who needs the experience of NBA playing time more than either of those two combined. As this excellent breakdown demonstrates, Bruno took some major steps forward toward the latter half of his time with the Raptors 905 in the D-League this season, but has barely seen the floor with the big club this season. Which is fine. That was the plan. But the Raptors are being presented with a great opportunity to see how that D-League growth will or won’t translate to the next level. Besides, against the Sixers and Nets it’s practically a D-League game anyways.
Playing the lottery
The Raptors, as you’re likely aware by now, own the worst pick between the Denver Nuggets and New York Knicks, a residual benefit of the Andrea Bargnani trade. So, for example, if New York ends the season with the 7th pick and Denver with the 9th (how things would shake it if the season ended Monday and the nothing changed post-lottery) it means the Raptors would take the Nuggets pick and draft 9th.
So apart from watching the bottom of the East’s playoff standings, where the Pistons and Pacers are fighting to determine which will be the 7th or 8 seed, the Raptors brass will also be eyeing how their potential pick holders will finish things out. The Knicks have one game remaining, against the aforementioned Pacers. Meanwhile, Denver, too, has one game left, against the red-hot Portland Trail-Blazers. Raptors fans should they both lose now, and then win big at the lottery.