Prognosticators show little love to Raptors
Few predict team will match last season’s 56 wins, or finish second in East again
DETROIT— With the NBA season set for tipoff Tuesday, the picks and predictions are rolling out by the day.
In the East, it seems to be a unanimous consensus that the Cleveland Cavaliers will be the conference’s top team. It’s the projected second seed where the topic gets debatable and if you’re a Toronto Raptors fan, perhaps disrespectful.
ESPN’s First Take debated the second seed in the East for almost four minutes this week before the Raptors — last year’s No. 2, a 56-win team and the Cavs’ opponent in the Eastern Conference final — got a passing mention. Stephen A. Smith and Max Kellerman yelled at each other over whether the Boston Celtics, Indiana Pacers or the New York Knicks were fit for the spot under the Cavs, but the Raptors weren’t a serious part of that conversation.
“OK, that’s fine, that’s always been the case,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said Wednesday, before his team downed the Pistons 103-92.
“I like when people underestimate us. It should motivate us, putting us as underdog. I told all our guys we have to earn their respect and do it over (again). It can’t be a one-year wonder. We have to come out and prove to the league again that we’re for real and that should keep our guys motivated and hungry.”
It’s not just on TV shows that feast on low-hanging fruit where the Raptors have been passed over. Yahoo’s Ball Don’t Lie blog has this year’s Raptors pegged at 48 wins and fourth in the East; Bodog.ca set the overunder for the Raptors at 50.5 wins for the season, which would have them third behind Cleveland and Boston. A CBS Sports panel has the Raptors third at 49.5 wins.
“Don’t matter,” Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry said. “We’ve got to just go out there and do our job and not worry about what people do or say. You see it and read it but at the end of the day you go out there and still got to work.”
At the Palace of Auburn Hills, the Raptors went to work to control their second-to-last pre-season game against a Pistons team that analysts predict will make a jump up the East standings. Lowry (27 points) and DeMar DeRozan (26 points) both scored 20 in the first half and the Raptors opened up a 20-point lead in the third, with the starters going to the bench.
Given the franchise bests that the team set last year — a record number of wins and its deepest playoff run ever — some might think the expectations might be higher on this team.
“That’s kind of what you want, you want to slide under the radar,” said forward DeMarre Carroll. “We’re going to come in and play Toronto Raptors basketball and we’re going to surprise a lot of people like we did last year. We don’t care who believes in us or not.”
On some levels, it could be a relief for Casey to be manning something of a forgotten outpost.
“My biggest thing is fearing that thinking that we’ve arrived and done enough, so let’s lay back on the beach and drink Mai Tais and chill out,” Casey said. “I love being the underdog. I love trying to get everyone’s respect. We accept that and we go with it.”
Jared Sullinger (foot) and Terrence Ross (knee) sat out for the Raptors, though Casey expects them to be ready for the opener. Sullinger may play on Friday when they close out the pre-season in Washington.