The Raptors just endured a brutal stretch of the season. They had to face the Thunder, Spurs, Knicks, and Timberwolves in four of their last five games. It didn’t go well. The Raptors suffered four losses and didn’t inspire much confidence in their ability to beat top teams (other than Cleveland) at any point during the regular season or the playoffs.
What fans needed was some optimism, someone saying that the Raptors would figure things out and that they could become a true powerhouse centered around Scottie Barnes, Brandon Ingram, Immanuel Quickley, and RJ Barrett. Zach Lowe provided a much more pessimistic view of the Raptors’ future.
“This is a good team,” Lowe said about the Raptors on the latest episode of The Zach Lowe Show. “Even if this core stays together and grows together for two years after this, I’m not sure I really see the road map to a great team with this group, and it’s because I just don’t know what unlocks a really truly good offense and their record against the best teams.”
Being a good team is fine. It should be enough to bring the Raptors back to the playoffs. But they should be aiming much higher than that.
The Raptors have some glaring flaws
No team is ever truly perfect. Toronto isn’t even really close.
The team’s defense is legit. The Raptors have the eighth-best defensive rating in the league, and Scottie Barnes should have an All-Defensive First Team selection coming his way. Offensively, it’s quite a different story. The Raptors currently rank seventeenth in offensive rating. They don’t score a ton of points and struggle from the 3-point line.
Their struggle to put together a consistent offense especially rears its ugly head in the fourth quarter and has cost them some valuable games.
The Raptors cannot score in the fourth quarter, and they cannot win against other playoff teams—except for Cleveland, which could come in handy in the playoffs if the standings don’t change too much. Cleveland is the only playoff team Toronto has beaten consistently, winning the season series 3-0. The Raptors also went 2-2 against the 76ers and secured a win over the Thunder. Otherwise, they haven’t gotten any wins against a playoff team in either conference.
The Raptors still have some time to figure things out
This iteration of the Raptors is still fairly new. Barnes has been with the team since the 2021-22 season, which makes him the longest-tenured Raptor among the team’s top four players. Barrett and Quickley came to Toronto during the 2023-24 season when the Raptors sent OG Anunoby to New York. Ingram just made his debut for the team earlier this season.
All four of those guys are still under contract through the 2026-27 season. Barnes is actually signed until after the 2029-30 season, and Quickley’s contract lasts through the 2028-29 season. Ingram has a player option for the 2027-28 season.
So, there’s still some time until the front office has to make some difficult decisions about the team’s future.