At this point in the NBA season, people definitely have expectations about teams. Some teams will meet those expectations. On the other hand, others could subvert them. 

Sometimes, there’s something fun about subverting people’s expectations. 

Admit it: you like the feeling of surprising people. It’s fun. When everyone expects you to zig, sometimes, the best thing you can do is zag. 

For example, look at the Toronto Raptors. They’re widely expected to blow this core up ahead of the 2022-23 trade deadline.

What if they took the opposite approach? 

Here’s a deal that has them doing exactly that by acquiring Bradley Beal of the Washington Wizards.