Toronto Raptors: Five best games of the 18-19 regular season

5. Toronto Raptors 129-120  Washington Wizards – February 13

If you didn’t have a significant other to celebrate Valentine’s Day with this year, that was probably a good move. By the end of the night, you were falling in love all over again and would need no plans for the next night.

It was the Toronto Raptors final game before the All-Star break, and the team was without Kawhi Leonard due to his load management regime and Fred VanVleet, who was still recovering from his broken thumb.

In VanVleet’s place was Jeremy Lin, who was making his first appearance for the Raptors after signing earlier in the day. While his time in Toronto won’t set the world on fire, Lin had a comfortable eight points, five rebounds, and five assists in the game.

The Wizards, at this point, were still trying to remain relevant in the race for the playoffs in the East, even without John Wall at point guard. At 24-33, the Wizards were still in the hunt for the final spot in the East and Bradley Beal was carrying the team for the whole season.

It was a close affair, and the Wizards did have a six-point lead at the half, but the Raptors defense, along with some fine scoring, prevailed in the second half to take a 129-120 win into the All-Star break. This game, however, was all about the young stars on the Raptors roster.

For both Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby, it was a night of celebration on a personal level as well as a team. Siakam put up a career-high 44 points, while Anunoby added a career-high 22 points just to add to the occasion.

The Raptors fought back in the second half, behind the rally of Siakam and Anunoby, before holding off a late Wizards comeback in the fourth quarter.

Even without Kawhi Leonard, this team still proved they can get the job done in style, and for Siakam, it was more proof that he belonged at the All-Star weekend.