The Toronto Raptors are officially terrifying. A unit that didn’t include Kawhi Leonard due to injury or Jonas Valanciunas for the second half (dislocated finger), blew out the Golden State Warriors in California Thursday night, 113-93. Oh, and they were playing the second game of a back-to-back. Goodness, this team is deep.
It’s time to take Toronto seriously if you haven’t been already. After 30 games, the team has double digit wins against the Warriors, Clippers, Lakers, Sixers (twice), and Celtics. It’s important to differentiate a close win from the dominant ones, because they aren’t winning by chance, they’re dominating. And that’s been true without their MVP in Leonard, too.
The Raptors are 7-1 without Leonard (22-3 overall), with the lone loss coming to the Bucks. Otherwise, they beat the Clippers by 24, Jazz by 13, and Lakers by 14 without their best player. Only one of those wins came by single digits.
Toronto is clicking despite canning Dwane Casey and dealing their beloved DeMar DeRozan. Maybe this summer’s rebranding was the solution.
Wake up. The Warriors have a serious threat, and it’s different from its predecessors.
The 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers had a once in a lifetime talent. The 2018 Houston Rockets had a pair of superstars and an offense from 3018. The 2019 Toronto Raptors? They have a Guy, a sidekick, and a fleet of other dudes. Their depth separates them from the pack.
Toronto is filled with analytics darlings outside of Leonard and Kyle Lowry. Pascal Siakam is producing at an all-star level. Fred VanVleet and Delon Wright run through stretches that show they could start elsewhere. Serge Ibaka is reborn; Valanciunas has been brilliant; Danny Green is ultra-reliable; OG Anunoby can defend. You have to peel back several layers before you can find a vulnerable spot in their rotations. Heck, a Leonard- and Valanciunas-less night didn’t even show weakness.
The Warriors were down both Andre Iguodala and DeMarcus Cousins, who hasn’t played a game since tearing his Achilles. But even when they return, it’s no secret this Golden State team doesn’t run deep. They’ve been playing two-way players major minutes, and now will be without occasional starter Damian Jones for the year.
A deep, talented team, especially one with a talent who can contain Kevin Durant to some degree, could be a postseason nightmare for the Warriors.
What do the Raptors have to prove before the postseason?
Thirty games is a reasonable sample size, but can the team produce like this all the way through?
Lowry’s been brilliant, and this could be his best season ever, but we’ve already seen a small blip where he fell off the Earth. He scored no points on 0-of-5 shooting in a blowout loss to the Bucks, and seven or less in the three games before that. Is the 14-point, 10-assist, good-defense-playing Lowry the real deal?
Ditto newfound star Siakam. He’s doubled his points per game to 14 on 10 percent better overall shooting, including 13 percent better three-point shooting. He’s getting to the line nearly twice as often by attempt rate, swooshing those tries 15 percent more often. He’s having a third-year explosion to say the least, but we know not to grade young talent on a curve. There are hiccups on the way to becoming an established player. How will 24-year-old Siakam handle his?
For now, everything is beyond smooth-sailing for the Toronto Raptors. They look and act the part of the best team in the league. The question is will we — and the Warriors — be saying the same in May?