Toronto Raptors – Championship Pedigree & Chemistry
It is well documented that the Toronto Raptors lost arguably the best player in the league, (Kawhi Leonard) after winning the NBA championship, and on top of that, a second starter in Danny Green as well.
Not a ton of people expected Toronto to be in the position they are now; sitting fairly comfortably in second place, with a real opportunity to make it to their second consecutive finals.
The Raptors are top six in man games lost due to injury, so the break most definitely benefits them, as they will have everyone back and healthy for the start of the seeding games. In order to fight their way to the finals again, they are going to have to turn to what has already gotten them this far, chemistry, grit, and the pedigree of a good team.
The Raptors are most definitely a talented team, with Pascal Siakam making the jump to a starting level All-Star, and Kyle Lowry taking his game up another notch, and not to mention a very strong rotation of 8-10.
However, the experience the core group gained from the championship run season, and the belief they have in themselves seems to be present throughout the season; this team just doesn’t give up. A perfect example was a Sunday afternoon in December where Toronto completed their largest comeback victory in franchise history; 30 points to the Dallas Mavericks.
This team fights, and they believe they can beat anyone. Pair that with Nick Nurse, who has established himself as one of the best coaches in the league, and a core-group of players who made it through the rigours of the playoffs just last year, this Raptors team looks very poised to do it again.
It will be interesting to see how Siakam performs in his first season as a first option in the playoffs, and Lowry will have to take his game up a whole level from last year as well.
However, don’t discredit championship pedigree. We hear it time, and time again, that experience plays an immense role in trecking through a successful post season run, and Toronto has just that.
