Raptors took full advantage of potentially season-deciding opportunity

The Raptors played a great game against the Magic despite missing Immanuel Quickley, Brandon Ingram, and Collin Murray-Boyles. They shot the three well, hitting 13 of their 29 attempts, dominated the rebounding battle and the battle in the paint, capitalized on the Magic’s many turnovers, and got big contributions from their role players. 

The Raptors’ defense held Paolo Banchero to just nine points in 30 minutes, which is well below his season average of 22.8 points per game. 

Most importantly, the Raptors gave themselves a massive advantage in the standings. The Raptors entered the game locked into a tight playoff race with the Hawks, 76ers, Magic, Heat, and Hornets. With a decisive win over the Magic, the Raptors built a three-game lead over Orlando and secured the tiebreaker by winning the season series. With only eight games left in the season—five of which are against playoff or play-in teams—the Magic shouldn’t be much of a threat to the Raptors anymore. 

The Raptors have the opportunity to basically eliminate the Heat as a threat in a similar way in April.

The Hawks and 76ers could still be a problem

The Raptors’ hold on fifth place in the Eastern Conference is thin. They have a 0.5-game lead over the Hawks and a one-game lead over the 76ers. 

The Hawks soared into the top six after an impressive win streak against mostly weak opponents, but they also beat the Pistons in overtime and played a close game against the Celtics. Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Jalen Johnson, CJ McCollum, Dyson Daniels, and Onyeka Okongwu have been great all month long. The one thing working in the Raptors’ favor here is that the Hawks’ remaining schedule is pretty difficult. They have four games against Boston, New York, and Cleveland, and two against Orlando and Miami still coming up. 

The 76ers just got Joel Embiid, Paul George, and Tyrese Maxey back. Embiid scored 35 and 29 points in his first two games in March. George also returned to the lineup two games ago and scored 28 and 26 points against the Bulls and Hornets, respectively. Maxey has only been back for one game after not playing since early March. He recorded 26 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 1 block, and 1 steal in 43 minutes to help lead the 76ers to an important win over the Hornets. If all three stay healthy, the 76ers might be able to string together some big wins to close out the season. 

The Raptors need to take care of business against the Kings, Grizzlies, Heat, and Nets, and hope for some assists from teams like Minnesota, Detroit, San Antonio, and Houston that could hand the 76ers some losses.