Raptors delivering knockout blow to Wizards is relieving after tough season series

Fred VanVleet’s Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards seemed like they were destined to meet in the play-in for the longest time before Wes Unseld Jr. had to watch his team slip away due to injuries. Nevertheless, Washington was determined to give Toronto their best shot on the road.

Even with Bradley Beal, Monte Morris, and Kyle Kuzma out due to injury, the Wizards put forth a valiant effort. While they were down by 20 in the first half, they were able to claw back and make it a one-point game late in the third quarter. Toronto’s lackluster defense and rebounding were part of what made a comeback possible.

The Raptors eventually managed to pull away in the fourth quarter, leading to a 114-104 win that may not appear to be as dominant as the scoreline would indicate. For the first three quarters, the beat-up Wizards nearly performed well enough to snatch a dub for the second time.

Toronto may not be in a position to pick one opponent out as a “better” matchup due to how inconsistent they are, but we now have three games of data that suggest Washington would be a tough draw for them if they make it to the play-in.

The Toronto Raptors haven’t dominated the Washington Wizards.

Washington’s strengths, namely scoring with efficiency, blocking shots, and rebounding the ball on the defensive end, are all things that Toronto has failed to excel at this season. Washington plays like a team that is contested to specifically give the Raptors an incredibly hard time on any given night.

This could have been much worse had it not been for Fred VanVleet coming alive once again and OG Anunoby setting a new career-best mark for points in a quarter with 18. The Raptors may not be the worst team in the league, but few can be more maddening to watch on a day-in, day-out basis than them.

Toronto is still currently flip-flopping between the No. 9 and No. 10 seeds, leaving them with a matchup against a Chicago Bulls team that likely going to be as tough a matchup for Toronto as Washington. The Bulls and Raptors each took one game in the regular season, and Toronto’s second win came in the middle of an alarmingly inefficient night from DeMar DeRozan that likely won’t be repeated.

This team hasn’t made things easy all season long, and they likely won’t start doing so in the postseason. At the very least, Toronto should be thankful that (barring any last-minute divine intervention) the Wizards will not be around to face them in April.