Ranking 5 the most likely NBA champions if season resumes

4. Toronto Raptors

Losing a player of Kawhi Leonard‘s caliber is obviously the chief reason why, but it’s not often that defending NBA champs are so overlooked in the title discussion. Even after Leonard and Danny Green left in free agency last summer, the Toronto Raptors have carried on like nothing happened, putting a three-game distance between themselves and Boston for the 2-seed in the East.

Kyle Lowry is playing with the confidence of an NBA champion. Pascal Siakam has taken up Kawhi’s mantle as a two-way terror and legitimate All-Star. Norman Powell looks like the player the Raptors envisioned from the beginning, Fred VanVleet‘s better than ever, OG Anunoby is going to be a problem very soon and Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka remain as reliable as ever.

What’s scary about this team is how good it’s been despite a plethora of nagging injuries to all of its key contributors. With a few months off to completely heal up, the Raptors — who already rank 12th in O-rating and second in D-rating with that truly stifling defense of theirs — could be more dangerous than people realize.