Where Do The Raptors Rank In The East?

[The Great One]

Best case scenario - 3. Worst case scenario - 5.

[SkywalkerAC]

Raps fans seem to discount their own players getting older, but never do the same for the competition. Lou Williams is still seen as a 6th man contender despite being 33 this season. Al Horford "isn't getting any younger" - also 33 years old this season. But Kyle and Gasol and Serge are written off for their "imminent decline".

Looking at the East, can Embiid stay healthy all season? Did Milwaukee and Philly do enough this offseason to take another step forward? Do DeAndre and Kyrie actually upgrade the Nets when they were already playing so well with Russell and their shot-sharing style?

Raptors proved they had what it takes to win games without Kawhi last year. I think we have the depth to do that consistently. Unless we start jettisoning our veterans, I'd be surprised if we don't hit 50 wins.

[Apollo]

Best case scenario - 3. Worst case scenario - 5.

So Siakam goes down and early for the year and they're 5th by the end? That's confidence.

[slaw]

Raps have a lot of key guys in contract years. Money is a great motivator. Third.

[SkywalkerAC]

I think people are also discounting our championship/winning pedigree - we were racking up high-win seasons before Kawhi, and I think this is a better team, with better coaching, than those.

And this isn't the Cavs, who were lacking depth and were completely dependent on Lebron before he left. This is one of the deepest teams in the league, and these guys know how to win.

[The Great One]

So Siakam goes down and early for the year and they're 5th by the end? That's confidence.

That's an Armageddon scenario.You can say the same thing for every team. What if Kawhi goes down early and miss the rest of the year? what if LeBron goes down early and miss the rest of the year? what if Giannis goes down early and miss the rest of the year? etc..

[Quirk]

I put 2nd, but they could easily win the east, they are a well coached team with a pretty good roster. Personally, I'm happy with top 4 in the east and 2nd round of playoffs as a minimum. If Lowry gets traded though, all bets are off.

[Apollo]

Power Rankings:

26. New York Knicks
Surprised they’re not at the bottom? It’s because they signed some vets to add to their young core, which means they won’t be the worst team heading into the season … and that’s not the best news if they want to clinch a bottom-three spot to get the best lottery odds.

14. San Antonio Spurs
DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge are an underrated twosomeand Dejounte Murray will be back this year.

13. Toronto Raptors
Watching Kawhi Leonard leave is obviously a huge loss, but they still field a good enough lineup with Pascal Siakam as the first option to be a playoff team.

12. Brooklyn Nets
Why so low, you ask? Kevin Durant could be out for the whole year. So a team that just lost D’Angelo Russell and got Kyrie Irving is basically the same as last year’s squad. They’ll still be tough in the East, but until Durant returns, they’re not elite.

10. Boston Celtics
If Jayson Tatum bounces back from an okay sophomore season and Kemba Walker is actually a better fit than Kyrie Irving, the Celts will be a contender.

8. Philadelphia 76ers
Their starting five — with Al Horford and Josh Richardson added to the mix — is so good on paper even if it’s quirky. They’re going to be fun to watch.

2. Los Angeles Lakers
Bron, Brow and Boogie already make up an incredible trio, then add Kyle Kuzma and Danny Green. But they’re just short of No.

1. Los Angeles Clippers
They get the nod over their Staples Center roomates. Do you realize how agonizing it will be to face them in a playoff series? Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Patrick Beverley will wear you down defensively and there’s depth up and down the lineup with Louis Williams, JaMychal Green, Rodney McGruder and Landry Shamet. Scary.

https://ftw.usatoday.com/2019/07/nba...2019-offseason

[Apollo]

I think Shamet will have a breakout year in LA. He's sniper and will get many open looks.

[Quirk]

Lakeshow beats clips, LeBron and AD are both Kawhi level or nearly so. Noone else on the clips is remotely "scary," though Beverly is good, if he's playing with George and Leonard, that means that Kawhi is at the 4 and I can't imagine him banging against bigger guys all year long and not hurting himself, and same with PG. George will push Leonard out of position (or vise versa) too much. George has always been very good, but not superstar level except last year with Westbrook, not ready to trust his production stays at that level. I just don't see the Kawhi/PG matchup as being nearly as complimentary as LeBron and AD.

Denver will also beat Clips, especially by the time Leonard and/or George are hobbling through the playoffs, Jokic is no Joke, Murray will get better. Rivers is an overrated coach.

In the east, Bucks have peaked, and coach Bud can't adjust, teams will have their number and they will decline a bit, but still be top 3, or even #1, in the regular season, but flop in the playoffs, they were lucky to face a falling apart Boston, they would have lost to the 76ers.

Philly is scary, but somehow I feel they will be less than the sum of their parts. Too many dicey matchups, not sure Embiid and Simmons are a good matchup, adding Horford into this doesn't clear it up any, though they are all excellent players.

I say final 4 teams in the west will be Lakers, Denver, Clippers and Houston, with Lakeshow ad Nuggets in the final.
In the east Bucks, 6ers, Raps and Miami if they land Westbrook, otherwise Indiana, with Toronto vs Philly in the finals.

With some opposing team injuries, break out players, coaching and luck, Toronto could make the NBA Finals again.

However, the real goal is a top 4 finish in the east, make 2nd round of playoffs, stay competitive for the next two years, and strike again when the opportunity presents itself, and it will.

Toronto is not a dynasty, very few teams repeat. We should look to teams like San Antonio and build a foundation that consistently stays competitive and is always in a position to capitalize on getting lucky, either by way of an unexpected player being available for trade, later in the draft or on the free agent market.

[S.R.]

It'll be a miserable year if Raps finish 6-8. You're really not a good team in the East if you're there with 40-45 wins. I think this team is definitely better than that. I wouldn't be surprised with anything 3-5 with them jostling with Celtics and Pacers, see how all that turns out.

[Apollo]

So 80% of the board feels the boys make it to 3rd-5th seed. For context, based on last year's standings we're saying 50 wins without Kawhi. So eight less wins without Kawhi in the mix. Not to mention that the Pacers are going to be threatening the Bucks for top seed and both the heat and Nets should be taking a step forward this coming season.

I'm sticking with 6th seed and around 45 wins (three more wins than the 6th seed Nets had last year). Maybe I'm a pessimist.

[planetmars]

It's not just Kawhi that we lost.. we lost Danny as well.. and he was awesome in the regular season. Yeah I think HCA in the first round would be amazing but I'm not feeling it.. I think I voted 5th. We're going to see a lot more parity in the league next year.. especially with the way the draft went down too. Teams are less likely to tank. I also don't see too many dominant 60 win teams.. although the Bucks should still be really good.

[DanH]

So 80% of the board feels the boys make it to 3rd-5th seed. For context, based on last year's standings we're saying 50 wins without Kawhi. So eight less wins without Kawhi in the mix. Not to mention that the Pacers are going to be threatening the Bucks for top seed and both the heat and Nets should be taking a step forward this coming season.

I'm sticking with 6th seed and around 45 wins (three more wins than the 6th seed Nets had last year). Maybe I'm a pessimist.

Well, 45 wins would put us 5th if the top 5 stay the same. And even though it's actually both Kawhi and Danny going, it's not 82 games of Kawhi, either. Mostly, though, the difference is that last year's team was not a 58 win team. They had significant injuries to both Lowry and JV, and rested Kawhi for a quarter of the season - and ended at 58 wins. Now, there will likely be injuries this year too, but expecting injuries (and rest) to be on the same scale as last year is pessimistic, I think. If you call it a 60 win team (again, probably conservative), and Kawhi and Danny worth 15 wins, there's your 45 - and that assumes zero contribution from new players nor additional contribution from players stepping into larger roles.

Not sure the Nets are significantly better than they were this season. The Heat are probably better, but have to be a lot better to get in that ~50 win conversation. Meanwhile, Celtics might be low 40's this year instead of high 40's, Indy might be better but also might be worse, and Orlando and Detroit haven't done anything yet to make me think they are a threat to move up the standings.

[planetmars]

Lots of people are discounting Orlando.. they had an awesome second half to the season and gave Toronto fits in the playoffs. Not much roster turn over either so chemistry will be great. Wouldn't be surprised if they are in the running for 3rd or 4th in the East.. although 5th or 6th is more likely. I like Orlando more than Miami.