The Toronto Raptors are guaranteed a spot in the Play-In Tournament next season The red carpet has been rolled out By Josh Cornelissen | Aug 25, 2024 Mikal Bridges, Brooklyn Nets and Scottie Barnes, Toronto Raptors / Cole Burston/GettyImages The Toronto Raptors might go from 25 wins to postseason this season, don’t pass go, don’t collect 200 dollars. Last season was a nightmare for the Raptors. A slow start motivated the front office to move off of OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam, and in the process a slew of injuries broke down the ability for this team to play competitive basketball. A record-setting losing streak dropped them into the depths of the lottery, merely putting them in position to give up a Top-10 pick to the San Antonio Spurs from the Jakob Poeltl trade. It seems reasonable to expect the Raptors to improve next season, if only because their roster will be healthier. Yet things might be breaking in such a way that Toronto will not only be better, but so much better that they will zoom right past the teams around them in the Eastern Conference and earn a postseason bid. Why the Raptors will be better The 2023-24 Toronto Raptors went through a startling transformation, then never got to spread their wings as a new core. Of the rotation that opened the season, only Gary Trent Jr. was still available to play during the final two months of the season; everyone else was either traded away or injured. That included significant injuries to Scottie Barnes and Jakob Poeltl, as well as minor injuries and absences for nearly every other player on the roster. Trent is the only player on the roster to play more than 60 games, appearing in 71 contests last season. The roster was unable to find a rhythm from the trade deadline through to the end of the season, churning through starting lineups and signing players off the street to play in games that same night. Once Barnes went down with a fractured hand on the first day or March, the Raptors would not start the same five players more than two games in a row the rest of the year. If the Raptors are healthy, however, they should be significantly improved. The four-man lineup of Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Scottie Barnes and Jakob Poeltl only played 234 minutes together last year, but they had a +10.8 net rating when they did play, by far the best on the team (min 100 minutes). And in the entire league, among 4-man lineups who played at least 225 minutes, the only non-playoff teams with stronger groupings were the Spurs (one Victor Wembanyama group) and the Warriors.

The Toronto Raptors are ensured a spot in the Play-In Competition next season The stage has been set for the red carpet. 25 August 2024, by Josh Cornelissen Scottie Barnes, Toronto Raptors, and Mikal Bridges, Brooklyn Nets / Cole Burston/Getty Images Don’t pass go, don’t collect $200, the Toronto Raptors may reach the postseason this season after winning 25 games.

The Raptors endured a nightmare of a season last year. A sluggish beginning persuaded the front office to move off of OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam, and in the process a large number of wounds separated the capacity for this group to play serious b-ball.

They went on a losing streak that set a record and dropped them to the lottery’s bottom, putting them in a position to give the San Antonio Spurs a Top-10 pick from the Jakob Poeltl trade. Even if only because their roster will be healthier, it seems reasonable to anticipate the Raptors improving next season.

However things may be breaking so that Toronto could just be worse, yet such a great deal better that they will zoom directly past the groups around them in the Eastern Gathering and procure a postseason bid. What will make the Raptors better? The Toronto Raptors of 2023–24 underwent a shocking transformation, but they were unable to fly as a new core

Only Gary Trent Jr. was still available to play in the final two months of the season out of the rotation that started the season; everyone else was either traded away or injured. That included huge wounds to Scottie Barnes and Jakob Poeltl, as well as minor wounds and nonattendances for virtually every other player on the list.

Trent is the only member of the roster who has appeared in more than 60 games; he did so last season in 71 games. The program couldn’t track down a beat from the exchange cutoff time all the way to completion of the time, stirring through getting setups and marking players going the road to play in games that very evening.

When Barnes went down with a broke hand right off the bat or Walk, the Raptors wouldn’t begin similar five players multiple games in succession the remainder of the year. However, the Raptors ought to be significantly improved if they are healthy. The four-man setup of Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Scottie Barnes and Jakob Poeltl played 234 minutes together barely a year ago, yet they had a +10.8 net rating when they played, by a long shot awesome in the group (min 100 minutes). The Spurs (one Victor Wembanyama group) and the Warriors were the only non-playoff teams in the league with stronger 4-man lineups that played at least 225 minutes. Quickley and Barnes’ growth is reasonable given that the Raptors’ core is also young.

RJ Barrett is playing the best b-ball of his vocation and is a contender to be Most Superior this year assuming he proceeds with that degree of play.

Gradey Dick ought to be better as the expected fifth starter, and increases like Davion Mitchell and Jamal Shead give Toronto more choices protectively on the edge. The Raptors seem to be a group that will win much in excess of 25 games this season.

Why it will be worse in the East As of late we composed a piece investigating the point of why the Raptors should reassess the season in the event that they get having a difficult time. One of the focuses we made was that there are such countless groups who might need to tank into major areas of strength for a draft class, so to get in place they ought to break for the base early.

The issue with that plan is that the remainder of the Eastern Gathering may be so awful, so rapidly, that there is no space for the Raptors to beat any other person to the base. While they didn’t go “all-in” this mid year, they likewise didn’t take actions that would recommend they will do something besides attempt to dominate matches next season. That makes them the special case among the East’s base half.

The Washington Wizards will almost certainly be the league’s worst team this season, given that they dealt away multiple veteran players this summer.

They have fierce opposition from the Brooklyn Nets who exchanged away Mikal Scaffolds and seem, by all accounts, to be locked onto the lower part of the standings. The Detroit Cylinders and Charlotte Hornets made minor augmentations to profound lottery groups.

The Raptors won’t necessarily be better next season than any other team in their division. The Chicago Bulls exchanged Alex Caruso and DeMar DeRozan away from a group that dominated only 39 matches.

As they change the roster, the Atlanta Hawks may not be completely committed to winning this season because they traded away Dejounte Murray and took the No. 1 pick. If either Chicago or Atlanta fails, or, in the case of the Bulls, tries to be bad, the Raptors may pass them simply by default of being a functional NBA team.

It’s hard to imagine the Pistons, Wizards, Hornets, or Nets being better than the Raptors next season. Even if they only win 35 games, Toronto appears to be on track for a spot in the Play-In Tournament next season.

The Falcons qualified last season with only 36 successes; paradoxically, the tenth seed in the West was the Brilliant State Heroes, who won 46.

The sort midsection of the East might drive the Raptors squarely into the postseason. That is not a horrible result, but rather it likewise may fool this front office into thinking they have gained more headway than they have. Regardless of whether the Raptors make a major stride and pass the vehicles around them, they are not prepared to contend at the highest point of the gathering. The Raptors must develop their team with patience and a long-term perspective.