Breaking down some of the key matchups and important dates for the Toronto Raptors.
The Toronto Raptors enter the 2016-17 NBA season looking to improve upon last year’s finish. They had a franchise record 56 wins and made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals before losing to the eventual champions Cleveland Cavaliers in six games.
Next: 10 best NBA front offices
Along the way, they garnered lots of love from neutral supporters who took notice of how fiercely loyal their fanbase was, especially the ones who stood outside the Air Canada Centre during the playoffs. In the offseason, the Raptors stood pat while other teams in the Atlantic Division got better, including the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks. But despite what Jae Crowder thinks, the Raptors should still be regarded as the favorites to win the division again.
However, they have a mountain to climb if they want to topple the Cavaliers for best team in the Eastern Conference, and they have to do so without one of their best glue guys in Bismack Biyombo. But rather than pay him $18 million like the Orlando Magic did, they instead drafted Jakob Poeltl, who has upside, and could slot in as the back-up center next season.
Related Story: DeMar Derozan wants to leave a legacy in Toronto
However, the heart and soul of the team still belongs to their all-star backcourt of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan. They played like the best backcourt in the East last season, and while the former is still on a very team-friendly deal, the latter just signed a max contract and will come into this season looking to prove that he was worth the investment. If his play in the Olympics is any indication, though, he has been.
Given how much the Atlantic Division has reloaded, any game Toronto plays against their divisional foes will be important. In particular, matchups with the Celtics are worth keeping an eye on. Boston’s first game in Toronto could see Jae Crowder get a lot of boos after he said he isn’t afraid of the Raptors, while the addition of Jared Sullinger means this could turn into a real rivalry.
It will also be interesting to see how they fare against the revamped New York Knicks. The Raptors went 14-2 against the division last season, although one of those losses came to the Knicks, and a similar record will be important if they want to win it again.
Other Eastern Conference matchups to look forward to include the Chicago Bulls, who the Raptors couldn’t beat in four tries. For some reason, they have proven to be a thorn in Toronto’s side, and the addition of Dwyane Wade, who scorched the Raptors in the playoffs last year, won’t help matters. However, they must exorcise those demons, especially if they meet up in the playoffs.
And while it won’t directly correlate to success in a playoff series, the Raptors will hope to win the season series against the Cavaliers again. When they met last season, Kyle Lowry had one of the best performances in franchise history when he put up 43 points and sunk the game winner in a 99-97 win. Toronto’s faithful will be hoping for a repeat performance from him this time around.
It won’t be easy for the Raptors to improve upon their 56-26 record from last season, but after a deep playoff run like the one that they just went through, the motivation will be there to get over the hump.