There’s been a legitimate debate among Toronto Raptors fans about whether they should look to tank and just play for a better draft position or make a concerted effort to make the play-in tournament and possibly reach the post-season, and with just 12 games left in their season, it looks like the latter’s won out.
The Raptors have won four of their last five games, are about as healthy as they’ve been all season long, still hold a positive point differential and net rating despite their dismal-looking 25-35 record and, most importantly, the team itself hasn’t given up on the season just yet.
“We’re professionals, we’re ultra competitors and we’re out there,” said Fred VanVleet after the Raptors lost a hard-fought game to the New York Knicks Saturday afternoon. “So anytime we’re out there we’re giving it all we’ve got and it may not look as pretty as it should all the time, but we’re giving it everything we’ve got and we just didn’t have enough today.”
But while the spirit and attitude of the club appears to be in the right place, the reality of the situation is that time isn’t on their side, and neither is the current situation of where they are at in the standings.
It’s a real dogfight for 10th place in the Eastern Conference as the season winds down here with the Raptors and Chicago Bulls tied and both just two games back of the red-hot Washington Wizards, who have surged into that final play-in spot in the East on the back of an eight-game win streak.
These three teams are the major players in what’s shaping up to be a tightly-contested fight here at the back-end of the season for No. 10 in the East.
Here’s a closer look at each of their situations heading into this week.
Toronto Raptors
Current record: 25-35
Games remaining: 12
Schedule this week: at CLE, vs. BKN, at DEN, at UTA, at LAL
There’s little doubt the Raptors have been playing better of late thanks to finally looking to be healthy, plus the additions of Khem Birch and Freddie Gillespie help shore up what had been a shaky, season-long centre situation. However, just as it looks like the ship might be steadying, the Raptors hit this storm of a week.
Toronto will play five games in seven days with back-to-backs on Monday and Tuesday against the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Brooklyn Nets, then Saturday and Sunday against the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Lakers.
The only game that the Raptors are playing this week that could be considered a relatively easy matchup is their game against the Cavaliers and after that, it’s a murderer’s row of contests that includes the start of a tough four-game Western Conference road trip, starting Thursday night with a tilt against the Denver Nuggets.
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Chicago Bulls
Current record: 25-35
Games remaining: 12
Schedule this week: at MIA, at NYK, vs. MIL, at ATL
While not as tough as Toronto’s schedule this week, the Bulls do still face a tough test, playing four games, all against teams in the Eastern Conference’s playoff picture already.
Despite making the big trade for Nikola Vucevic at the trade deadline as an indicator that the team was making a concerted push for the playoffs, the Bulls have been spinning their tires in the second half of the season and have conceded what was a lengthy hold on No. 10 in the East.
They’ve played better of late, having won three of their last five games and do hold the tiebreaker over both the Raptors and Wizards this season, but that advantage means nothing if they can’t find their footing, and fast.
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Washington Wizards
Current record: 27-33
Games remaining: 12
Schedule this week: vs. SAS, vs. LAL, at CLE, at DAL, vs. IND
Oddly enough, of these three teams, the Wizards looked to be the most disadvantaged just a week ago as the Raptors and Bulls both currently have the tiebreaker over them. But tiebreakers may not matter when you win eight games straight and your two all-star guards are playing the way Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook have been as of late.
The @WashWizards have won 8 consecutive games for the first time since December, 2001. pic.twitter.com/MfARqDAHNu
— NBA History (@NBAHistory) April 26, 2021
In this eight-game run, Beal has been averaging 32.1 points per game and Westbrook has turned back the clock to his old MVP self, averaging a monstrous triple-double of 22.4 points, 13.1 rebounds and 11.8 assists.
The triple-double Westbrook is averaging in that span is par for the course for him, as he’s once again averaging one over a season, putting up 21.8 points, 11 rebounds and 10.9 assists per game with Washington.
All season long the Wizards have disappointed, but something has clicked chemistry-wise between Beal and Westbrook in this late-season surge, and the team has not only won eight straight but 10 of their last 11.
At the rate that Washington is going right now, there’s a chance it could threaten No. 9 Indiana and even No. 8 Charlotte. With star power playing the way Beal and Westbrook are playing right now, the sky truly looks like the limit for the Wizards.
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