Toronto Raptors: Mailbag questions, including “who’s the best playoff matchup?”

The Toronto Raptors sit in second place of the Eastern Conference at the All-Star break. We decided to take your best questions in this week’s Raptors Mailbag.

The All-Star break has come and gone, and now the Toronto Raptors are gearing up for the homestretch. With 23 games remaining, the Raptors still have many questions to answer.

How will Marc Gasol and Jeremy Lim integrate with the team? Is there enough time to catch the Milwaukee Bucks? Will Nick Nurse find a consistent rotation before the playoffs start? Before they answer their questions, I decided to answer your questions. We gathered the best questions from Facebook/Twitter in this week’s mailbag:

@nbaplayerscout: Which of the three other contenders does Toronto match up with best?

This is a tough question because three of the four teams in discussion made moves at the deadline to shake up their roster. The best matchup, for now, has to be the Philadelphia 76ers.

Kawhi Leonard has owned Ben Simmons, Marc Gasol has owned Joel Embiid in the past, and Danny Green is excellent on Redick. Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris will be problems, but the Raptors have multiple athletic wing defenders.

You didn’t ask, but the worst matchup is probably the Boston Celtics. It’s easy to pick the Bucks after they won the season series to 3-1, but from a roster standpoint, the Celtics have a lot of things which can give Toronto trouble.

The Raptors have trouble matching up with Kyrie Irving, Al Horford is too quick for Marc Gasol, and the Celtics have multiple wings to throw at Kawhi defensively.

@tvalentine94: Who has the best routine in Kyle Lowry’s intro?

These are the type of hard-hitting questions journalists are afraid to ask today. With the importance of this dilemma weighing on me, I actually broke down the tape to address this question.

It appears as if they all have a different intro each time he comes out. In the multiple videos I watched, OG Anunoby appeared to be the most consistent. Many ab workouts from young OG. Getting a sweat in before the buzzer sounds, that’s dedication.

Nick (direct message): Can the Raptors still earn the one seed?

Not really. Milwaukee is already two games up in the loss column and owns the tiebreaker. Toronto would need to lose four fewer games the Bucks the rest of the season. Meaning if the Bucks go 17-5 (less than their current win pace), the Raptors need to go 21-2. Very unlikely.

@_nishisan: Markieff to the Raptors, what are the chances? Would it be worth it?

Zero. He has already signed with the Thunder. However, this is a good oppurtunity to discuss something else which is Toronto’s 15th roster spot. Due to tax-concerns, I doubt the Raptors fill the spot at all, at least until the playoffs start.

If they do bring someone back (Assuming Vince Carter is not bought out), I’m hoping for Lorenzo Brown. Toronto has too many players it’s trying to keep happy with minutes, and whoever they sign likely won’t get on the court. If someone is at the end of the bench for morale, who better than Lorenzo Brown.

Was your question not answered? Give us your best questions in the comment section below and I will attempt to answer as many as possible.