The long 2023-24 season mercifully comes to an end. Despite all the turmoil, this team is still worth your attention!
Enjoy this last week of Raptors basketball!
Seriously. Watch every second of each of the 4 games and soak in all the Raptors basketball you can. It doesn’t matter if Toronto’s getting blown out by 30 points (which I predict right now will not occur) or dropping another 120 points on the Pacers — relish the final moments of professional basketball by your Toronto Raptors!
Vince Carter’s induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame is a reminder of the ‘sliding doors’ moment in the franchise when he swooped in and inspired countless Canadians to play the game and, more importantly, saved the team from the fate met by its Canadian counterparts on the west coast. If Carter never landed in Toronto, would the Raptors continue playing sub-.400 basketball and eventually sold to an American buyer, just as the Vancouver Grizzlies were?
Thankfully, that’s not a scenario worth thinking about any more. For now, we watch and wait for next season.
Larry Tanenbaum’s not-so-secret plan to bring a WNBA franchise to Toronto is another reminder of what it felt like trying to get a professional basketball team north of the border. With the NBA’s popularity reaching a fever pitch, especially in Canada, whispers of an NBA team coming to Toronto grew louder. It’s the exact situation currently playing out in the WNBA. Should Toronto be granted a team, names like Caitlyn Clark, Angel Reese, and Aaliyah Edwards could be the second coming of Air Canada.
For now, we wait.
Immanuel Quickley is averaging 28 points, 11 assists, 9 rebounds, 3 triples, and 2 steals on 48/40/96 shooting over these two wins over Milwaukee and Washington. RJ Barrett continues to be a battering ram with his drives, creating drive-and-kick opportunities for his teammates or layups for himself — ironic that he’s everything offensively that Raptors fans wanted from OG Anunoby. Gary Trent Jr. is playing his best basketball of the season at the perfect time. He’s been a leader while the team was missing all its starters, and a deadly shooter with Quickley and Barrett back in the lineup. Regardless of how this last week plays out, these three have given a tantalizing look at what the Raptors’ starting lineup can do next season alongside its All-Star, Scottie Barnes, and top-10 Center, Jakob Poeltl.
For now, we wait.
We wait for lottery balls to drop.
We wait for a draft where moves will surely be made.
We wait for a free agency period where Toronto has a healthy amount of money to spend.
We wait for an offseason where Darko Rajakovic can properly integrate a roster where over 50% of the players were not part of last year’s training camp.
While we wait, we must enjoy these final four games of the Raptors season!
April 9 vs Indiana Pacers
How fitting that the Raptors close out its home schedule with the possibility of tying a season-high 3-game win streak against Pascal Siakam and the Indiana Pacers! The only other time Toronto won 3 straight this season……was against Pascal Siakam in Indiana!
With a monumental game coming up next against the Cavaliers, the Pacers could be caught looking forward to its next game in Cleveland. The teams are currently separated by one game in the battle for 5th. More importantly, Indiana is only one game ahead of Philadelphia and Miami in the loss column in the battle to avoid the play-in tournament.
Rick Carlisle’s squad is doing everything they can to finish in the top 6. Over the last two weeks, the Pacers have produced victories over the Clippers, Lakers, Thunder, and Heat. However, they’ve also lost to the Nets and Bulls. Which version of the Pacers will the Raptors see tonight?
Fun fact that may only interest me
The possibility of the Pacers finishing in 7th or 8th opens up an interesting scenario for the Raptors, albeit a long shot.
Toronto owns Indiana’s top-3 protected pick in this year’s draft. If the Pacers flame out of the play-in tournament, the draft lottery gods could bless the Raptors with the 1st (their own) AND 4th pick (Indiana’s) in this year’s draft!
Basketball Reference currently gives Toronto an 8.9% chance of landing the first overall pick and Indiana a 0.1% chance of landing the fourth pick. If you’ve read my posts long enough, you know I’m already thinking of puns related to ‘9’.
Prediction
With IQ and Barrett back in the mix, the Raptors are back to owning a competent half-court offense with a deadly transition game. Toronto will struggle against good defenses while punishing bad defenses with the 0.5 offense.
There’s a reason why the Raptors, despite its roster flaws/turnover, have won 2 of 3 against the Pacers this season (and almost all 3). Indiana’s defense is not great. Toronto has scored at least 125 points in each matchup.
Unfortunately for the Raptors, Quickley is resting for the first game of a back-to-back. He’s been a steadying force for the team. A second pizza party may not be in the cards. Indiana wins the game but Toronto covers the +13.5 spread.
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