Capped at around 2 million due to infrastructure and security. We still hold the biggest parade, 5km stretch.. Canada’s team we did that🏀🥳

We've watched years of horrible basketball, and we were 'SUPPOSED' to be a (maybe) play-in team this year.

We've seen some huge growth from some players

Our bench is better

Hoping that Poeltl takes a summer off to heal up

We finally found a 3+D with JaKobe

THAT shot from RJ.

We have most of our players under contract

Add the 19th pick to this core

CMB got some important playoff time

We took a HEAVILY favoured Cavs team to 7 - missing two starters. It's been a tough couple of years to be a Raptors fan, but this year was AWESOME.

The LAC are/were a shitshow. Like I see people saying the C & PG positions are weak here but the Clippers were FAR worse.

For YEARS the Clips had 1 PG, 1 C Zubac, & 1 small ball backup PF in Batum, & guys at SG like Coffey & Mann who are 2nd/3rd stringers at best & CANNOT handle the ball (neither can Jordan Miller or Ben Mathurin).

The ONE year they had a legit backup 5 in Hartenstein they let him walk in FA to sign John Wall.

There was also a huge controversy where Ty Lue REFUSED to bench Marcus Morris' rotting corpse when he was one of the WORST players in the NBA. This is while having Robert Covington on the bench who was THRIVING in the few mins he played.

This squad has upwards of 4 ball handlers, potentially 3 centers (4 if you include CMB), multiple forwards, etc. This team is SO well balanced compared to his Clips squads.

I even like IQ next to Kawhi, I expect a breakout year from him, Kawhi THRIVES next to elite 3pt shooters & rarely has them at PG aside of Garland, Jackson &, Harden, that was actually one of the knocks against Lowry who regressed to a 34% shooter next to Kawhi.

And despite all that, despite playing with the corpse of Brook Lopez last year they still made a playoff run in a loaded Western conference but fell apart at the end due to injuries.

Only 2 games in I know, but we have the best defensive rating thus far. The scary thing - this is just the beginning.

One of the biggest things I’ve noticed is Jakobe’s energy and intensity on D. He was always a capable defender but last night you could really tell he’s taking that side of the ball very seriously.

This defence is going to be an absolute nightmare once we get more reps in and get comfortable with all the new schemes/inserting Kawhi.

Our center spot is obviously one of our biggest weaknesses, but overall I see some improvement from Yak this year

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7702165/2026/10/19/nba-power-rankings-week-1-thunder-knicks-raptors/

If we look at +/- for the Raptors playoff runs from 2014 to 2020, unsurprisingly Kyle has the best rating.

On the other hand, for all players who played at least 20 mins per game and a minimum of 10 games, Derozan is literally the worst and by a lot!

17 Cory Joseph is minus 129. And #18 Derozan is minus 275.

https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask?q=best+plus+minus+raptors+players+in+the+playoffs+min+20+mins+per+game+and+min+10+games+between+2013-14+to+2019-20

Hopefully, the NBA can resolve the Clippers/ Aspiration scandal quickly and without any punishment for Kawhi, but if Kawhi receives punishment in the form of a suspension, there could be some very interesting implications for the Raptors that could actually be beneficial. The downside of missing Leonard for the length of the suspension is significant and likely outweighs these benefits, but I still wanted to highlight three benefits of a Kawhi suspension and how the Raptors could get some upside from Kawhi being sidelined to start the year.

1. Since the trade has not been finalized, a re-negotiation of assets could occur. I would still expect the players involved to remain the same, but in the past, when a player's physical reveals an undisclosed injury, we have seen draft assets altered. For example, in 2025, the Sixers added a second-round pick to the Caleb Martin/ Quentin Grimes trade after it was discovered that Martin had a hip injury. I think a newly added suspension is pretty similar to discovering an undisclosed injury, and it would be fair and reasonable to alter the draft compensation based on the newly added suspension. It's unlikely that the Raptors recover any first-round draft capital unless the punishment is incredibly severe, but I could see a world where the Raptors could recoup some of the 2nd round picks they sent out. I don't know of another trade involving a player with a pending suspension, so I'm curious what others think the value is here, but I think a 2nd round pick per 10 games is fairly reasonable, with the potential to include first-round draft capital if the suspension reaches or exceeds half the season.

2. A suspension would give the Raptors some tax relief. Assuming the trade goes through, the Raptors are about $600,000 under the tax, with one roster spot that needs to be filled and with a veteran minimum costing $2.45M, we can project the Raptors to be sitting about $1.85M over the tax. Here are the rules for team savings in the event of a suspension:

If the player is suspended for more than 1 game but fewer than 20 games, the player forfeits 1/145th of his salary per game missed.

If the player is suspended for 20 or more games, the player forfeits 1/110th of his salary per game missed.

The team then recieves 50% of the player's lost salary in luxury tax relief. This dies not count towards saving against the salary cap or the aprons.

So, if Kawhi is suspended for 25 games (the same Paul George recently received for using a banned substance, and what Ja received in 2023 for his gun livestreaming incident), the Raptors would receive $50,300,000 * (25/110) = $11,431,818 * 50% = $5,715,909 in tax and relief. The fewest amount of games that would allow the Raptors to duck the tax would be 11, which would save them $1.9M. This might not seem like that much of a benefit, but teams have been pretty adamant about avoiding the repeater penalty, and this could push it one year down the road.

*Brief note on his trade-kicker: Kawhi has a trade kicker in his contract that he needs to decline for the trade to even go through with the Raptors hard-capped, and there may be a scenario where he elects to pick up some of that trade kicker if he is suspended to make up for his lost salary. I don't think this will be possible because the suspension won't give the Raptors any apron relief, but I wanted to include this just in case I'm missing something, and they find a way for him to accept some or all of his trade kicker. The max value of the trade kicker is $7.45M, so if he is suspended for half the season and takes his full trade kicker, the Raptors would save $1.92M and just duck the tax.

1. Is it beneficial to the Raptors' potential playoff run if Kawhi has an early-season suspension? The Raptors essentially innovated load management for Kawhi in the 2018-19 season, and now the NBA might mandate that Kawhi miss the first 25 or so games of the season? Obviously, it could hurt playoff seeding, and there is the risk that they end up in the play-in or miss the playoffs entirely if they get off to a slow start, but I could see a world where this allows Kawhi to stay healthier and fresher deep into the season. He also wouldn't be injured during this time off, so he could stay in shape and go through full workouts the entire time. It's not ideal, and I'd much rather have him playing, but for Kawhi specifically, I think there is some real long-term health upside.

I hope he isn't suspended because I would prefer if this trade could just go through and we can get 60+ games of Kawhi next year, but if Silver drops the hammer on Kawhi, it might not be so bad for the Raptors, as long as the suspension does not run too long.

TL;DR: If Kawhi is suspended, the Raptors could recoup some draft assets from the trade, will save money against the tax, and playing a shorter season may help Kawhi stay healthy deep into the season & playoffs. I think 11-25 games is the range the Raptors may be content with, as this allows them to duck the tax, could return some draft capital, and likely won't be so long that they fall out of the playoffs. The top end of this range also lines up with the recent PG13 (banned substance) and Ja (gun livestream) suspensions. Any longer and I worry about how it could impact the Raptors' playoff hopes, especially if any injuries occur to the other core players. Hopefully, no suspension happens, and we can enjoy what I think is the most anticipated Raptors season since the run-it-back year, but if he is suspended, it might not be so bad for the Raptors.

Gravey Train was awesome tonight on both ends, really impressed.

These guys are the last 3 all stars drafted by the Raptors.

Pascal played on the best teams and has the most accolades. His all star teammates included Lowry x4, Derozan x2, Kawhi x1.

Derozan played on the worst teams. His only all star teammate was Bosh x1.

Scottie easily leads in most counting stats AND advanced stats. His all star teammates included Vanvleet x1 and Siakam x1. FWIW Scottie would be the guy you would likely pick out of the 3 as your franchise guy, four years in.

As a rookie, CMB already looks like our second best defender behind Scottie. He had two eye-catching plays last night. One where he used his instincts to block an Allen dunk attempt, recognizing that as soon as Mitchell made the bounce pass, Allen was waiting in the dunker's spot looking to dunk the ball. He also had a great read on a Harden lob attempt which ignited a fast break.

On offense, he took it to the chest of both Allen and Mobley to convert driving layups. When they sagged off him, he showed his touch by using his floater to float one into the basket. Watching CMB drive to the hoop, you can tell just how strong he is. He's built like an ox and it shows up on the glass too, where he's able to gobble up missed shots for putbacks.

Who are these guys? What show is this? What is going on?

I remember when people (like me) were so hyped over little signings like Jeff Dowtin and Armoni Brooks but looking back, they were quite nothing burgers

Great video from youtube planning channel About Here on potential obstacles to growing basketball in Canada.

TL;DR:

• The case for basketball: the game is growing, has a low barrier to entry and is space-efficient. This is in spite of a "curfew" where nets are taken down
• NIMBYs often lobby against basketball due to "noise," lower property values and worried that courts would attract crimes, drugs and 'disrespect to older people.' Studies debunk these issues while identifying the racism-coded language
• Most city parks were developed at the turn of the century and reflect design philosophies at the time to give open spaces to workers increasingly aggitated by poor work conditions, and "respectable sports" like tennis, horseshoe throwing so basketball missed the boat
• Some sports organizations and recreational players are very organized as a lobby, including soccer and pickleball
• There is poor organization of youth basketball compared to other sports to help promote lobbying for more accessible courts. This is because of how casual the game is at the rec level.
• Recommendation: fuck golf - build more courts for every single sport imaginable

I would also note that I made this post some time back on the politics of other sports vs basketball on this sub and so I'll make the same point here

Your communities are what you make of them, and even though it seems impenetrable, there ARE ways to expand your voice locally: Attend community meetings, send an email to your city representative, and most importantly VOTE for candidates that align with your values and what you want for your community.

https://www.reddit.com/r/torontoraptors/comments/wlb74v/public_basketball_courts_in_toronto_as_an_example/

I know Kawhi isn’t in his defensive prime but he’s still very handsy and can switch well, he can guard just about anyone (just not for a full game).

People always talk about offense offense offense in this league and I think NBA fans are about to find out what really scary defense looks like. I still think Toronto needs an offensive bump but they might not even need it if they can always play better defense.

This could actually be one of the best defensive teams we have seen over the last decade. You also have Shead, JaKobe, Poeltl (who hopefully gets healthy). Graves has a lot of potential.. add those guys on top of this trio we have.

Toronto was already looking like a nightmare for the Cavaliers all star guard duo, I can only imagine how frustrating this will be to play against.

Do you guys think we are higher than 9th?!

Just for peace of mind because it sounds like people are unsure of how to feel about the picks going out

The raptors made a play for now and the future. We still have our picks for the next 5 years. (27 being a pick swap but we’ll still have a FRP.

So let’s embrace the trade and get ready to contend 🦖

Year | Pick | Status After Trade
2026 | 1st | Toronto's, outright
2027 | 1st | Toronto's, but Clippers have swap rights
2028 | 1st | Toronto's, outright
2029 | 1st | Toronto's, outright
2030 | 1st | Toronto's, outright
2031 | 1st | GONE — unprotected, sent to Clippers
2032 | 1st | Toronto's, outright
2033 | 1st | GONE — unprotected, sent to Clippers