3 best roster moves the Raptors have made in 2021-22 season

1. Going with their no center, small-ball lineup

Necessity is the mother of invention, and Toronto was able to create its most effective lineup as a result of both injuries and ineffectiveness. Siakam, Anunoby, and Barnes have been rotating in and out of the 5-spot on both ends while a backcourt led by Fred VanVleet and Gary Trent Jr. gets them going from 3-point range.

While the Raptors have run hot and cold this season, injuries to their starters have prevented the group from playing more than one-third of their games together as a unit. However, as proven during their eight-game winning streak, they can plow ahead and pull off some impactful wins.

The Toronto Raptors unveiled a new-look lineup.

Toronto might face difficulties against teams with bigger, more physical centers, but it looks like Nurse is more than willing to make that tradeoff to be longer and stronger. With five players capable of being the leading scorer on any given night, Toronto’s quality is not in question.

The bench has let them down often, and Nurse has received some criticism for playing his starters a ridiculous amount of minutes, but this is the only way the Raptors can get all of the best players on the floor for heavy minutes. These five will determine how far this team goes in the playoffs.