RAPPING UP THE DIVISION
Toronto can rest for playoffs
Like the 29 other franchises in the NBA, the Toronto Raptors share a division with four other teams. Like none of the other 29 franchises in the NBA, the Toronto Raptors share a division with four other teams that aren’t making a priority of winning as many games as possible in the 2014-15 season.
The Brooklyn Nets started the season with a win-now approach, but eventually realized their plan of sacrificing draft picks and money for overripe talent had run its course. They might still make the playoffs, but obtaining youth and financial flexibility is most important.
The Boston Celtics are well coached, and a contender for one of the final playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. However, they’ve traded multiple starters this year, and are more concerned with the future.
The Philadelphia 76ers have taken the concept of losing now to win later to a revolutionary level, spending three of their last four first-round draft picks on players either injured for a whole season or committed to playing in Europe. They unloaded the other guy for spare parts and future picks at the trade deadline.
And they’re not even the worst team. The New York Knicks have the worst record in the league (and likely the best odds in the draft lottery), so the year has been a rousing success.
That leaves the Raptors, who clinched the Atlantic Division on Friday night with a win over the miserable Los Angeles Lakers, 9483 in Toronto. It’s the first time in franchise history they’ve won the division two years in a row.
“To come here and go through the tough times of the seasons not making the playoffs, being last in the division and now (winning) two divisions back to back, it definitely means a lot,” DeMar DeRozan said.
Certainly, this isn’t to take away a deserved moment of celebration for the Raptors, and particularly for Amir Johnson and DeRozan, both in their sixth seasons as Raptors. They’re fourth and fifth, respectively, in games played for the franchise.
Johnson, especially, played through a lot of pain to compete in some of those games, which undoubtedly led to his current deteriorated state — he’s tipping over, his perpetually sore ankles unable to remain sturdy.
Yet, this honour feels hollow in the moment, and that sense will persist if the Raptors suffer another early playoff defeat.
In other words, this is a weird time to celebrate anything.
“Yeah, we can hammer on the rut we’re in right now,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. “We can do all of that. It doesn’t take away the accomplishment of this team winning the third banner for this organization in 20 years. I think that’s something we’ve got to be proud of.”
There is a hope — now tinged with desperation — that the comfort the shambolic Atlantic gave the Raptors can explain their months-long swoon.
Quite arbitrarily, winning the division guaranteed the Raptors a top-four seed ( but not home-court advantage in the first round), so the team always knew this coronation would be waiting for them. Perhaps it’s been hard for the players to buy in fully because of that certainty, and perhaps some actual stakes will provide focus. That seems like a long-shot, but it’s as tangible as anything else they can cling to right now.
Regardless, these Raptors, from general manager Masai Ujiri on down, have plenty of work to do.