NBA games of the week: Raptors bounce back

TORONTO, CANADA - JANUARY 11: DeMar DeRozan
TORONTO, CANADA - JANUARY 11: DeMar DeRozan /
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LOS ANGELES, CA – DECEMBER 11: DeMar DeRozan
LOS ANGELES, CA – DECEMBER 11: DeMar DeRozan /

Sunday, Mar. 25: LA Clippers at Toronto, 6:00 p.m. ET

The Clippers won the first meeting, though that came on the second game of a back-to-back. With a day of rest, it’s something the Raptors should be able to handle better this time around.

The playoff seeding in the West is starting to separate at the ends, but still remains packed in the middle. The Portland Trail Blazers have won 12 straight, but are still only 2.5 games up on the fifth-seeded Utah Jazz. The Jazz have won 23 of the last 25 and are still only two games out of missing the playoffs. How nutty is that?

Next: Jonas Valanciunas found his place

The Clips hit a bit of a patch and have lost two straight, but so have the Pelicans, who remain the surprise of the 2018 part of the season. The Pellies still hold on to the eighth spot. If the Raptors hold off, then we can see the nebula that is the bottom of the West’s playoff standings start to form, no matter how slowly.