In a recent piece by Josh Elijah of Raptors Rapture, he examined the Toronto Raptors' prospects for a better record in the upcoming 2025-26 season. He pointed out that the key number to watch is around 40 wins or more, with most sportsbooks estimating the total somewhere between 37.5 and 39.5 wins. While some might consider reaching 40 wins a bit ambitious, Josh Elijah emphasized that, based on the current outlook (at least on paper), things seem set to lift Toronto to a new level, certainly higher than the 30 wins they achieved last year.
Once again, the big question about the Raptors, whether they'll underperform or overperform in terms of their record, has come up. This time, we have comments to highlight by Sam Vecenie of The Game Theory Podcast. In a recent episode titled "Eastern Conference Wins Over/Unders! | 2025-26 NBA Predictions," he discussed the Toronto Raptors as part of his analysis.
Vecenie said:
Sam Vecenie thinks Raptors will go over (and then some) on projected wins
"... I'm just going to tell people straight up. I think this goes over. I think this goes over by like a real margin with the Raptors. The Raptors won 30 games last year. Their over/under is 37 and a half this year. They have a ton of talent. They have a ton of depth. They have a lot of bodies here. You're looking at a starting lineup of Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Scottie Barnes, Brandon Ingram, and Jakob Poeltl, I would guess, in terms of what your five is. But behind them, you've got Ochai [Agbaji], you've got Gradey Dick, you've got Ja'Kobe Walter, you've got [Jonathan] Mogbo, you've got Jamal Shead, you've got Collin Murray-Boyles. They go out and they sign Sandro Mamukelashvili — I think that this team is gonna be one that wins a lot of regular season games is kind of where I'm at. "Sam Vecenie, Sep 28, 2025
There’s no denying the talent on this roster, that’s a given. Vecenie isn’t the first to point it out, and he certainly won’t be the last. Whether this version of the Raptors can come together and reach their potential remains to be seen, but we’ll have a better idea over time.
It’s also worth noting what Vecenie mentions at the end of his comments: “I think that this team is gonna be one that wins a lot of regular-season games.” That’s a clear way of saying he sees Toronto as a team capable of exceeding expectations during the regular season and making some noise. However, once the postseason arrives, perhaps that's when questions about inexperience or stepping up on the big stage might come into play.