Where Do The Raptors Rank In The East?

[planetmars]

We lost a superstar.. most teams that lose a superstar fall into the lottery. I don't think we're going to be that bad.. but most people who analyze the NBA aren't very good at their jobs.

[slaw]

We lost Danny green and some other guy in LA that I hear was pretty good, and replaced them with fringe scrubs. It's a prove em year once again for the underdogs up north.

Are they that much worse than the 15/16, 16/17, 17/18 Raps? Those teams won almost 170 games. I get that everything is relative to the opponents but you go back and look at those rosters and the 12-man group this year's roster looks just fine in comparison.

[golden]

Are they that much worse than the 15/16, 16/17, 17/18 Raps? Those teams won almost 170 games. I get that everything is relative to the opponents but you go back and look at those rosters and the 12-man group this year's roster looks just fine in comparison.

The East was tanking (e.g. Sixers, Magic) or just being naturally incompetent (e.g. Knicks, Nets) for most of the Dwane Casey era.

[S.R.]

Man, reading some of the ECF previews. Does anyone like this Raps team? I mean, geez, they've still got Lowry, Siakam, Gasol and Ibaka. They've got a bunch of decent young guys as well and..... they won't make the playoffs? I'll be shocked if they miss the playoffs. Man, I'll be a little surprised if they don't have home court. Perhaps I am underrating a bunch of teams but outside of the Bucks and Sixers and maybe the Celts (ugh), I don't see any other ECF as being materially better than Toronto and Boston is a wildcard.

It's ridiculous. Lowry is a 5x All-Star and started the ASG last year. Siakam should have been in the ASG and will be this year and will also be an All-Defence candidate - he was last season's best defender on a team with Kawhi, Danny Green, and Marc Gasol. Marc Gasol was still a franchise cornerstone type player in Memphis before arriving in Toronto to take on a reduced role - because there's way more depth here. Ibaka's a starter on most teams who's on the bench here. The only question mark is on the wing, where a bevy of young talent - Powell, OG, FVV, Johnson, etc. - is bound to produce 1-2 steady contributors at minimum. And it's the Eastern Conference. Since when does a team with that level of talent miss the EC playoffs? When did that last happen?

Now next year - when KD and Oladipo are healthy and the Nets and Pacers move up the standings, the East projects to be a lot more competitive. But for now there's still a big drop off after the first couple of teams and Toronto's as talented or more talented than the bulk of the East by almost any objective analysis.

[SkywalkerAC]

We lost a superstar.. most teams that lose a superstar fall into the lottery. I don't think we're going to be that bad.. but most people who analyze the NBA aren't very good at their jobs.

The only championship team I can think of that lost a superstar is the Bulls when MJ played baseball. They were still really good.

[SkywalkerAC]

The Thunder lost Durant, did they miss playoffs? The Spurs lost Kawhi, did they miss the playoffs?

good-great teams aren’t reliant on a single player.

[KeonClark]

Are they that much worse than the 15/16, 16/17, 17/18 Raps? Those teams won almost 170 games. I get that everything is relative to the opponents but you go back and look at those rosters and the 12-man group this year's roster looks just fine in comparison.

Don't get me wrong, I agree. I'm just saying that's how the US media is framing it. It's the same thing every year. Last year everybody had Boston as the better team than us, and we won the championship.

[planetmars]

The only championship team I can think of that lost a superstar is the Bulls when MJ played baseball. They were still really good.

Cavs with Lebron
Heat with Lebron
Lakers with Kobe

[Maury]

Harden needs to post up more? now there's a first.

He's been quite good at it in the very limited amount of possessions he's done so. He's very strong and would command a double team. He'd also be closer to the rim.

[SkywalkerAC]

Cavs with Lebron
Heat with Lebron
Lakers with Kobe

Thanks, but did any of those teams win the title that year previous?

Didn't the Heat also lose Bosh and Ray Allen? (Bosh only played 44 games apparently)

[planetmars]

Thanks, but did any of those teams win the title that year previous?

Didn't the Heat also lose Bosh and Ray Allen? (Bosh only played 44 games apparently)

AFAIK outside of Kawhi, no superstar has ever left a championship team. I was just trying to think like those "NBA analysts" that rank the Raps so low. Maybe they just feel like the Raps without Kawhi are irrelevant and as such think they will barely make the playoffs.

From my perspective it's essentially the same team as the Casey/DeMar/Lowry era. We just swapped DeMar with Pascal and have a new head coach. Only thing that will knock us down a peg or two is the championship hangover.

[Nilanka]

Speaking of Harden has anyone seen his new move he has been working on over the summer? I didn't know if it was just a summer workout video gag but it looks like its going to be a real thing he just whipped it out in the first preseason game. Its basically a 1 legged variation of his step back.

And he bricked it, lol.

[Scraptor]

We'll be fine.

Only teams that I see are clearly more stacked than us are the Sixers and Bucks.

I think the Nets will also surprise and probably sneak ahead of us, but as long as we have a healthy year I see us slotting in as the 4th seed.

[Demographic Shift]

We'll be fine.

Only teams that I see are clearly more stacked than us are the Sixers and Bucks.

I think the Nets will also surprise and probably sneak ahead of us, but as long as we have a healthy year I see us slotting in as the 4th seed.

Agree we are going to be fine... maybe more than fine.

The Nets are going to be interesting...I agree they could sneak in as high as 3 but for me they slot more to 5 or 6.

Irving had Horford last year in Chowdertown. This year he has a declining Jordan. The lobs and corresponding dunks will be epic highlight reel stuff.. but DeAndre Jordan isn't in the same snack bracket as Al Horford from my cheap seat. Horford could play inside on the PnR and stretch the floor and make 3's. Old man river is the complete package. Jordan while good to me isn't as multi faceted as old man river.

It depends on your view on if you rate the Levert and Dinwidde combo being better or worse or same than Smart and Brown... Say its a wash.... but the wings in Brooklyn right now...Prince and Harris prolly aren't as good as the Hayward/Tatum duo.

To me.. sans Durant... the Nets are this years wild card...

If Irving can get them to 3 it will be his best reg season year... but.. and there is always a but.... Irving is injury prone and likely won't play more than 65 games. He has had 3 knee procedures...

Virtual beer that they finish closer to 6 than 3.

[golden]

Agree we are going to be fine... maybe more than fine.

The Nets are going to be interesting...I agree they could sneak in as high as 3 but for me they slot more to 5 or 6.

Irving had Horford last year in Chowdertown. This year he has a declining Jordan. The lobs and corresponding dunks will be epic highlight reel stuff.. but DeAndre Jordan isn't in the same snack bracket as Al Horford from my cheap seat. Horford could play inside on the PnR and stretch the floor and make 3's. Old man river is the complete package. Jordan while good to me isn't as multi faceted as old man river.

It depends on your view on if you rate the Levert and Dinwidde combo being better or worse or same than Smart and Brown... Say its a wash.... but the wings in Brooklyn right now...Prince and Harris prolly aren't as good as the Hayward/Tatum duo.

To me.. sans Durant... the Nets are this years wild card...

If Irving can get them to 3 it will be his best reg season year... but.. and there is always a but.... Irving is injury prone and likely won't play more than 65 games. He has had 3 knee procedures...

Virtual beer that they finish closer to 6 than 3.

DeAndre Jordan was just a tiny upgrade. He and Jarrett Allen are pretty similar players, with the exception of Jordan being a much better rebounder. Nets probably didn't want to sign Jordan, but that was the cost of doing business to get his good buddy, Durant to sign. Seems like a lot of duplication that will hurt the development of Allen. A trade might be coming.