The Toronto Raptors have exactly 20 games left to play in their regular season.
Sitting on a 20-32 record so far, there’s little doubt this is a team that has disappointed.
Yes, injuries, the relocation to Tampa and bad COVID luck have all played factors, but pro sports are a results-based business and for the Raptors, the results just haven’t been there.
However, with the team entering the final portion of what has been a dim season, hope still remains — for both the team and its playoff aspirations and for the club’s loyal fans who are hoping for an improved draft pick.
Toronto plays Game 51 of its season Saturday night, taking on the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse at 7:30 p.m. ET on Sportsnet 360, where the direction this team will ultimately be heading towards will likely become clearer.
Here’s a look at three things to watch for in the game.
Payback time?
The last time the Raptors saw the Cavaliers was on March 21 in a game that was defined by Collin Sexton dropping 23 of his 36 points in the second half to lead Cleveland to a 116-105 victory over Toronto.
Sexton’s second-half eruption was fuelled by a small scuffle between him and then-Raptors guard Norman Powell.
That little back-and-forth proved to light a fire under Sexton to go out and bury Powell and the Raptors, who did little in response.
Put another way, Sexton sort of punked the Raptors as he was talking all sorts of trash to the team and then backed it all up by going ahead and winning the game for his Cavaliers squad.
It was a bad look for the Raptors at the time three weeks ago and if they have the sort of pride they’ve always appeared to have, they won’t let it happen again — or you’d at least hope they won’t let it happen again.
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For those on Team Tank…
For those who want to see the Raptors drop down the standings and “Fade for Cade” or “Suck for Suggs,” Saturday’s game will prove important for your cause.
The Raptors are just a half-game ahead of the Cavaliers in the standings, meaning a loss Saturday will drop them to 12th place in the Eastern Conference and may leave them with the sixth-worst record in the NBA.
Of course, the team isn’t actually actively trying to tank and is also 3.5 games out of 10th place (the last spot to make the play-in tournament), but if you really want to see the Raptors continue spiralling towards a possibly better draft pick then Saturday’s game could prove to be an important step towards the abyss.
Resting P
Aiding the pro-tank faction’s quest Saturday is the news that the Raptors will be without leading scorer Pascal Siakam, who is sitting out the first game of their weekend back-to-back set for rest.
Siakam joins Fred VanVleet (hip), Jalen Harris (hip) and Paul Watson (health and safety protocols) who are confirmed to miss Saturday’s game. Additionally, Kyle Lowry is doubtful to play with a nagging foot infection.
In some good news on the injury front for the Raptors, though, newly-signed Freddie Gillespie is available to make his Raptors debut Saturday and Rodney Hood’s status has been upgraded to probable. Hood, one of the players who came over in the Powell trade at the deadline, has missed the last four games with a right hip ailment.
Hood’s return would do much to help bolster a severely-lacking Raptors bench unit.
