Toronto Raptors: Tonight Is the Measuring Stick versus LeBron
By Ryan Greco
At 38-18, the Toronto Raptors have never been this good so late into the regular season, so it is fitting that the number one team in the east would roll into the Air Canada Centre tonight.
A win tonight against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers will spell out something we have only heard rumblings about in the fan base, but never truly said out loud — home court advantage throughout the Eastern Conference Playoffs is a real thing for this team.
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The Raptors could win the East.
Let that sink in for a second.
As positive, or jaded, as Raptors’ fans have been about this regular season, it is undeniable that the team has for the third straight season closed in on another franchise milestone.
But for scorned fans who are reluctant to get behind anything until after the first round, what winning the East also means is that it almost guarantees the Raptors a trip to the second round.
Only the Dallas Mavericks have exited the first round after winning their conference since the 16 team playoff layout was introduced back in the 1983-84 season.
At 41-15, the Cleveland Cavaliers are the perfect measuring stick for the Raptors.
After a convincing win over Charlotte Wednesday night, a game that saw James sit out the entire fourth quarter, the Cavaliers look like a focused veteran team that is rounding into shape at just the right time down the stretch.
Must we forget the 122-100 pounding they gave the Raptors back at the beginning of January, a memory that this team would certainly want to use as motivation for tonight.
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I’m not going to say a regular season game in February is a must win, but this one could set the tone for the remainder of the season for both teams.
It is the last time these two meet before the playoffs, and what happens tonight can play a lot into the psyche of either team when these two eventually meet again in May or June.
Barring a James injury, the Cavaliers will almost certainly be there, but the Raptors future is still greatly dependent on how they round into form during these last two months, and more importantly, where their heads are at.
One thing you should never underestimate in basketball is the head games.
It is the only reason I can understand that despite all shortcomings of the Chicago Bulls, and the lack of Jimmy Butler, the Raptors still managed to drop yet another game to them last week, a streak that has now been going on since even before Derrick Rose was in MVP form.
Seriously, when Doug McDermott goes off on you for 30 points, that’s some serious joo-joo the Bulls are sneaking into the Raptors Gatorade before tip-off.
But unlike the witchcraft voodoo curse the Bulls have seemed to have on the Raptors for the better part of this decade, the Cavaliers, and more specifically James, seem slightly more mortal.
The season series is tied at 1-1, and despite the Raptors dismal showing back in January, keep in mind that game was fresh off of a 115-113 loss to the Bulls and their witch doctor, I mean Joakim Noah.
For the Raptors, tonight will be a question of “can we beat these guys when they are nearing playoff form?” For the Cavs, the question tonight will simply be “how worried should we really be, if at all, about Toronto?”
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Despite the franchise record-setting pace, the Raptors are still living under a glass ceiling, and a win tonight may not shatter that barrier completely, but they can certainly leave a few more cracks in it before the night is finished.