1. Houston Rockets
This will be the game everyone is watching, and it won’t be for Raptors fans getting a look at how Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun are adjusting to Ime Udoka’s system. Rather, it stands as the return of Fred VanVleet after his departure in free agency.
A former Raptors point guard coached by someone who was originally the favorite to be Nick Nurse’s replacement prior to turning them down has all the makings of a serious revenge game. The frostiness between the two parties near the end of his tenure will only make things even spicier.
Fred VanVleet could return to hurt the Toronto Raptors.
In the same way that Lowry was treated like a conquering hero when he returned, VanVleet is likely going to get a similar reaction when a tribute video plays in Scotiabank Arena and the crowd erupts in a giant roar. After all, VanVleet is a part of Raptors history.
VanVleet’s unusual and weird end to his Raptors career will be forgotten as fans marvel at the career of perhaps the best undrafted guard in NBA history. Of course, they will have to shake out of that trance and try their best to make life tough for VanVleet now that he’s in Houston.