Toronto Raptors: The 3 teams Toronto needs to beat to get into play-in tournament
By Jason Mills
No. 10 seed: Chicago Bulls
The Bulls are one of the main foes standing in the way of the Raptors making another consecutive playoff appearance. They are 22-31 on the season, and currently hold the 10th seed.
Chicago’s front office also took an active role during the March 25th trade deadline to bolster their roster and ensure they return to the playoffs for the first time since 2017. Center Nikola Vucevic was acquired from the Orlando Magic in a deal that included Al-Farouq Aminu, and they sent Wendell Carter Jr., Otto Porter Jr., and two first-round picks back to Orlando in exchange.
The Bulls loaded up to beat out the Raptors
Their new executive vice president of basketball operations, Arturas Karnisovas, made a huge splash at the trade deadline in the hopes of sending a positive message to star Zach LaVine that the Bulls want to win. In 10 games with Chicago, Vucevic is averaging 21.8 points and 9.7 rebounds per game. The Bulls also acquired center Daniel Theis.
However, the deals haven’t necessarily brought the Bulls immediate success as they are sputtering along at 3-7 in their last 10 games. Their last head-to-head matchup with Toronto was a 122-113 win, giving them two victories over Toronto this season.
The two sides will face each other one more time on May 13. Should the Raptors fail to get the tenth seed and remain 11th overall, these losses to the Bulls could haunt Toronto through the off-season.