Every NBA team’s best iteration ever
By Micah Wimmer
Toronto Raptors: 2017-18
It’s hard to think of another franchise whose best team carries with it such a sense of sadness, of tragedy, of inevitable loss. But this is the Toronto Raptors, who, through no fault of their own, were placed in the same conference as LeBron James, NBA legend and dasher of Canadian dreams.
All throughout the regular season, the Raptors appeared like a legitimate Finals threat. Led by the All Star duo of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, and supported by the best bench in the league, the Raptors won 59 games — the most in franchise history — and earned the number one seed in the Eastern Conference. With limited flexibility, GM Masai Ujiri was able to improve the team by finding young players such as OG Anunoby, Pascal Siakam, and Fred VanVleet, all of whom exceeded reasonable expectations game after game. Eventual Coach of the Year winner Dwane Casey also found ways to lessen the team’s reliance on DeRozan and Lowry, giving the team a more egalitarian structure and a freer flowing offense. They finished second in SRS, and offensive rating, while also finishing in the top-five in points allowed per 100 possessions. They looked really good!
It all came to a crushing end in the Conference Semifinals though. After leading literally the entirety of regulation, the Raptors lost in overtime to the Cavaliers in Game 1, and lost in an equally soul crushing manner two games later as LeBron banked in a buzzer beater. It was rough. The Cavaliers finished out the sweep, making it 10 consecutive games they had beat Toronto in the playoffs. But let us try not to remember the Raptors for how their season ended, but for how good they looked in the regular season, when they looked like the best team in the East and a legitimate Finals threat. Alas.