Eight of the last 10 NBA champions have owned a top-10 offense and defense, and so do the 2026 Toronto Raptors, 13 games into the year.
When removing garbage time, Toronto has the sixth-best offense and ninth-best defense (Cleaning The Glass). Toronto was competent defensively last year, but this offensive leap couldn't have been foreseen before the arrival of Brandon Ingram.
That arbitrary benchmark is a telltale sign of a legit contender. Raptors fans didn't expect this mix-and-match roster to compete for the Larry O this season, but the playoffs aren't out of reach.
Not only are the playoffs attainable for this group, but home-court advantage should be the goal. The shot-making, youthful legs, contributing bench units, and potential East contenders underperforming give Raptors fans more than hope.
The Toronto Raptors could be a surprise Eastern Conference playoff team
The fit between Brandon Ingram, Scottie Barnes, and RJ Barrett was more than shaky on paper. All three players need the ball in their hands to be effective, and none of them are prolific volume 3-point shooters.
It was easy to envision a world where the trio stepped on each other's feet. That hasn't been further from the truth. For starters, none of them controls possessions a distinguishable amount over the others.
Immanuel Quickley handles the ball for the most part, setting up these bucket-getting distributors. Per databallr, these are the Raptors' playmakers' on-ball percentages:
- Quickley: 33.0%
- Barnes: 17.0%
- Ingram: 16.6%
- Barrett: 15.4%
There's a clear pecking order, and it falls in line with each player's playmaking abilities. Quickley is a quote-unquote true guard, while the other three are jumbo playmakers who consistently finish possessions. Ingram is finishing possessions with the best of them.
The rim finishing from Ingram has been passable, but he's finishing possessions from the mid-range like he's facing the Phoenix Suns in the first round again. Ingram has made the sixth most middies and is shooting 55 percent from there. That's better than the five who've made more total middies.
Ingram has been an incredible addition to an offense that needed saving. He isn't shooting the 3 well (a teamwide issue), but his influx of shot-making has been key for Toronto's half-court offense. The half-court offense may turn down a few notches, but the transition offense is sustainable.
The Raptors are the No. 1 team in fast-break points. They are close to three points better than the second-place Atlanta Hawks. Toronto's young wings glide up and down the court, drowning teams with their youth. Toronto kicks it in gear quicker than other teams off live rebounds. Once the board is secured, the Raptors fill the lanes, itching for a fast break opportunity.
Toronto made major splashes over the last two years. They extended Barnes and Quickley and made polarizing moves for Barrett and Ingram. With the amount of money they spent up top, it's possible they didn't expect to get this type of bench production.
Led by Jamal Shead, Sandro Mamukelashvili, Gradey Dick, and Collin Murray-Boyles, Toronto has the second-best bench net rating in basketball. These have been the most accurate 3-point shooters on the team besides Dick. That's a bit concerning if they want to make legit noise come April.
What should be encouraging to the Raptors faithful is how flat Eastern Conference teams have come out of the gate. The Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks don't appear as dominant as last season.
The Hawks and Orlando Magic haven't lived up to their preseason hype (Atlanta does look better without Trae), and Toronto feels comfortable against the rest of the teams hovering over the East standings.
The Detroit Pistons, Philadelphia 76ers, Milwaukee Bucks, and Miami Heat are familiar playoff faces, but Toronto shouldn't feel like they can't hang with these teams.
It's hard to fully buy into the run-and-gun Raptors team because of the lack of perimeter shooting on the roster. Only 34.4 percent of their shots come from behind the arc, which ranks 25th. They don't employ a deadly sharpshooter who's cold-blooded enough to fire 10 3s in a playoff half.
Grady Dick may turn into that fire cannon, but he's not there yet, and Jamison Battle doesn't do the other things well enough to demand heavy minutes. Conversely, Toronto is drilling 37 percent of their 3s, which is solid, but the math problem could be a bit too much to overcome when game plans dial up in the postseason.
For now, advancing in the playoffs is a ways down the road. These Raptors are steadfast on getting into transition and continuing to leverage their jumbo creators in Ingram, Barrett, and Barnes. Barnes isn't close to his ceiling; finding out if Ingram and Barrett are his co-stars of the future is another important piece of this Raptors season.
Toronto could remain a top-10 offense and defense all year. I don't see them contending this soon, but that type of consistency on both sides of the ball warrants some conversations. This team may be ready for some playoff action depending on how the rest of the East shakes out.