After a few years of uncertainty and middling-to-mediocre play, the Toronto Raptors may finally have found a winning formula.
Sitting six games above .500 and second in the East, the Raptors are on a roll, winning nine of their last 10 and six in a row.
They’ll look to keep the good times going Sunday against a Brooklyn Nets team that should be an easy matchup on paper, but has the potential to turn the tables on Toronto.
You can catch their showdown on Sportsnet ONE and Sportsnet+ at 6 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. PT.
The Raptors are coming off a 140-110 win over the Washington Wizards on Friday, helping them clinch a spot in the elimination stage of the NBA Cup. Everything seems to be going their way.
-
-
NBA on Sportsnet
Livestream 40-plus regular season Toronto Raptors games, marquee matchups from around the association, select NBA Playoffs games, the NBA Draft and summer league action on Sportsnet+.
Now, they face a Nets team against whom they’ve won four straight games.
The Raptors have already beaten Brooklyn once this season, winning 119-109 on Nov. 11 to jumpstart their current six-game streak.
Over the streak, the Raptors rank second in the NBA in offensive rating (122.9), fifth in defensive rating (109.2) and second in net rating (13.7), behind only the powerhouse Oklahoma City Thunder.
They also have the best assist-to-turnover ratio (2.27), the third-best effective field-goal percentage (59.6) and the third-best true shooting percentage (62.8), pointing to a newfound offensive efficiency.
While the Raptors employ a scoring-by-committee system, Brandon Ingram has led the way with 21.1 points per game on 49.6 per cent from the field. RJ Barrett is close behind at 19.6 a night on 50.7 per cent, while Scottie Barnes is netting 19.4 a game on 51 per cent.
Barnes has been the big star for the Raptors, as beyond just scoring, he’s tallying 7.6 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.6 blocks per game, and is shooting a career-high 41.4 per cent from three-point range on 3.6 attempts per game.
The Raptors will be without centre Jakob Poeltl, who continues to manage back pain he’s dealt with for much of the season. The Austrian big is averaging 11.3 points and 7.7 rebounds. The Raptors have a 2-2 record with him out of the lineup.
However, rookie forward Collin Murray-Boyles is available to return to the lineup after missing the last two games with a right MCL sprain.
The Nets, meanwhile, have leaned on seventh-year wing Michael Porter Jr., who is averaging a career-best 24.8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists while shooting 48.6 per cent from the field and 37.5 per cent from three-point range. In Brooklyn’s upset win over the Celtics on Friday, the summer trade acquisition netted 33 points with eight rebounds.
Mired in a tank year, the Nets have fielded a young and unproven roster, which includes the four first-round selections they made at the 2025 NBA Draft: Egor Demin, Nolan Traoré, Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf — none of whom have looked like instant-impact players in Year 1.
Despite their questionable makeup, the Nets have won three of their last eight and are still outperforming the 2-14 Indiana Pacers and 1-15 Wizards in the dregs of the Eastern Conference.
So while the showdown pits an 11-5 team against a 3-12 team, there’s always room for upset in the NBA. If the Raptors wish to cement their spot in the upper echelon of the East, they must take care of business.
