The clock seems to have finally started ticking for LeBron James and his Cleveland Cavaliers. In the midst of a heated 2-2 series with the Indiana Pacers, the Cavs are looking vulnerable. While the Pacers still have a way to climb there’s a very real possibility that they might eliminate the Cavs in the first round.
I can’t stress enough how excited I am for playoffs in Toronto. This is by far my favourite time of the year, baseball is back, the NHL playoffs are in full swing and the NBA playoffs are starting up. Could we ask for a better alignment?
The Toronto Raptors have rightfully claimed the first seed in the East and have finally trumped the Washington Wizards after a heated back-and-forth tussle. Adding to this series the Raptors finally won game one, managing to knock one of many monkeys off their back.
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The Wizards have proven that the Raptors can’t simply push them to the side and set their mind on the second round but, after some shaky games three and four the Raptors finally tied the bow on the Wizards in game six.
Next up is either the Cleveland Cavaliers or the Indiana Pacers who are in a sudden death game seven on Sunday. If the Cavs win it’ll be one of many meeting that the Raptors have had against LeBron.
The Raptors have a storied past against the Cavs. At this point, every Raptors fan should openly hate the Cleveland Cavaliers. With the year the Raptors have had they finally seemed ready to take on the Cavs come playoff time.
With the Cavs playoffs up in the air, we have to consider asking…

Would a finals run without facing LeBron James mean as much to the Raptors organization?
In a year of proving doubters wrong, the Raptors seemingly had their mind on one big thing, and that was beating LeBron James.
As mentioned earlier the Raptors have many “monkeys on their backs” when it comes to the playoffs; the largest and heaviest being LeBron. He has had his way with the Raptors in the playoffs going 8-2 (with a sweep), having never lost a series to the Raptors. In doing so LeBron has built the reputation of King of the East (this and many other things like winning 3 championships).
His Raptors dominance stretches all the way back to his early Miami Heat days where he convinced the Raptors’ best player, Chris Bosh, to join him and take over the East. LeBron has long proven to be the Raptors’ kryptonite.
He has also stood as the perfect first round image, having never lost a series in the first round. Since rejoining the Cavs in 2015 LeBron has gone 12-0 in first round match-ups for a total of 48-7 previous to this year.
With the record LeBron has amassed, beating him (before the finals) seems nearly impossible. So the Raptors being given the chance in the second round would be incredibly meaningful. Beating LeBron in the playoffs would validate just about any team in the NBA. This current Raptors team would more than willingly snap at the chance to prove they’re better than LeBron.
Conclusion
The Raptors have the pieces, DeMar DeRozan has finally become a superstar, Kyle Lowry has taken a team role sacrificing for the good of others and they have depth like no other. After earning the first seed in the East the Raptors have shown how dominant they can be. And, with the Cavs having the weakest iteration of their team in years the door is open for the Raptors. The only downside is that the Cavs have LeBron.
That’s why not being given the chance to beat LeBron would be extremely disappointing. Having not proved yourself against the best leaves some to be desired.
Next: Raptors Cavs Playoff Preview
But, you know what also helps validate a team? A run to the finals.