By now, we all know that the Toronto Raptors, despite aiming for a lower draft pick, have been performing too well to fall down the tanking rankings. They’ve had a strong March, winning eight games and losing five, with two more games left this month.
They faced a fairly mediocre lineup of opponents after the All-Star break, finishing with the most easiest schedule left in the NBA. This is evident from their remaining matchups against struggling teams like the Utah Jazz and Washington Wizards, and they also have two games against the Charlotte Hornets to wrap up the season.
Given their relatively easy competition, it's no wonder the Toronto Raptors boast the best team defensive rating in the league for March. As NBA statistician Keerthika Uthayakumar noted on X, "10 of their 13 games this month have come against bottom-10 offenses."
Raptors dominate March with the best team defense in the NBA
Even when the Raptors faced off with one of their toughest opponents, the Golden State Warriors, the Dubs' renowned head coach Steve Kerr had to shower praise on Toronto for their efforts on March 20.
Kerr said, "I know that their record's not great, but they have really good defense... they turn you over, they lead the league in fouls... they have a very aggressive attack mentality."
Additionally, Esfandiar Baraheni on X points out that the Raptors have the "5th best defense in the NBA since January 1st."
This is another sign that their early-season struggles on that front have mostly disappeared as the new year began. Many fans still recall the poor defense that haunted Toronto in the first half of the season.
It's clear that going up against weaker teams can make a defense appear stronger. However, that overlooks the hard work of the tough Raptors' defenders, especially players like Scottie Barnes and Jakob Poeltl, who put in great effort to protect their area of the court.
As I mentioned in another piece, it’s essential to focus on the positives that come from unexpected outcomes like this one and use them to pave the way for future success.
While winning right now may not help our draft odds—and it can be frustrating to see the defense perform better when it wasn't needed—these are still important qualities for the Raptors to build on. As they work to integrate Brandon Ingram into the team and possibly bring in new players, these strengths will serve them well.
The stars seemed to align for Toronto as they adjusted their defensive strategy, leading to a successful campaign. There's strong evidence that the right pieces are in place to focus on this approach, aiming for victories and an overall winning season.