Last Weeks Recap:
If you’re a Toronto Raptors fan, you should be very excited with the way the team has been playing. Going into the week of the 14th-21st of November, the team is 7-2 despite having to start two rookies for multiple games with Jared Sullinger still out after foot surgery and Jonas Valanciunas with a sore knee, as well as not having Terrence Ross against the Charlotte Hornets or DeMarre Carroll against the New York Knicks. DeMar DeRozan is still leading the league in scoring and what was just a hot start might be the new normal. Well, this might be the week where the team slips down the standings.
Matchups:
Cleveland Cavaliers (A), Golden State Warriors (H), Denver Nuggets (A), Sacramento Kings (A)
Cleveland Cavaliers (8-1)
The Raptors will already be facing the Cleveland Cavaliers for the second time this season. They lost the first matchup at the Air Canada Centre controversially. The NBA came out and said there should have been a foul called on J.R. Smith in the last minute of the game when he undercut Valanciunas. It was not called and Cleveland went down to score the game-winning three while Valanciunas was still on the floor. This is time for Toronto to get payback. Smith is day-to-day with a sore right ankle; with that nagging injury, there is no way he can keep up with Derozan. Carroll did not play on Saturday against the Knicks, hopefully he is fully rested to take on LeBron James. If Kyle Lowry has a remotely average game against Kyrie Irving, Toronto could very well get the win.
Key Matchup:
Kyle Lowry vs. Kyrie Irving
Prediction:
Raptors win 108-104
Golden State Warriors (8-2)
Did Masai Ujiri insult the schedule makers mother? Because giving a team a back-to-back against Cleveland and Golden State could be categorized as cruel and unusual punishment. With Klay Thompson finally out of his dreadful shooting slump, the high powered Golden State offense will be tough to stop. Toronto ranks 5th in PPG allowed at only 99 a game. Where the Raptors struggled last year was defending the three point shot, where they finished bottom five in the NBA. There have been massive strides in this area by Toronto this season as they are now 13th in the league with opposing teams shooting 34% from three. The only weakness Golden State has is in the inside, with only Zaza Pachulia and David West. If Valanciunas can have a career game and Toronto can finally knock down some threes, they might have a chance.
Key Matchup:
Jonas Valanciunas vs. Zaza Pachulia
Prediction:
Warriors win 110-100
Denver Nuggets (3-7)
Toronto played against Denver in their third game of the year, winning 105-102. Denver has had glimpses of promise; but with such a young team, they have been only glimpses. This will be another very difficult game. They still have the towers in the middle in Jusuf Nurkic and Nikola Jokic. Where they have been dreadful is the point guard position. Emmanuel Mudiay has started his second season in the NBA the same way as his first, turning the ball over at an alarming rate and having one of the worst shooting percentages in the league. Mudiay is averaging more turnovers (4.6) than assists (3.2). Lowry has started to play a little better since his less than stellar start. By far and away his best game came against the Nuggets with 29 points. Expect Lowry to have another field day against the young Mudiay.
Key Matchup:
Demar Derozan vs. Danilo Galinari
Prediction:
Raptors win 94-87
Sacramento Kings (4-7)
Toronto’s shocking loss to the Sacramento Kings has not been forgotten by Dwane Casey or his staff. There was a major whole missing in that game, as Valanciunas missed the game with a knee injury. Toronto started the game playing two rookies in the front-court, Pascal Siakam and Jakob Poeltl, against the formidable DeMarcus Cousins. This game will be very different as the big Lithuanian will be back. Cousins, while still dominant, will not have such an easy game against Valanciunas. Toronto will have had a long week by then and fatigue could play a factor. But if their All-Star backcourt has a solid game, and Valanciunas asserts his dominance on the block, Toronto could rout Sacramento.
Key Matchup:
Jonas Valanciunas vs. Demarcus Cousins
Prediction:
Raptors win 99-85
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