The Toronto Raptors Are LEGIT!

The Toronto Raptors Are LEGIT!

What a win by the Toronto Raptors, guys. This team is legit. The Raptors get it done again when it looked like they were going to maybe lose this game as this game had trap game written all over it. The Raptors find a way to win it and it was their defense that propelled them to the victory in this one. 8 and one over their last nine games. This Raptors team has resurrected from the dead. I mean, this is a team that after that 1 and4 start, I had my doubts. I’m like, “Oh boy, is this going to be another lottery bound season, but the Raptors have literally turned their fortunes around.” It’s been their offense, it’s been their defense, it’s been guys coming into their own, but this team, they are starting to look really damn good. Nine and five now. The way they’re able to come up with clutch plays to win it. This was impressive there at the end. I mean, where do I even begin? Brandon Ingram, what a game. This is exactly why you want to do like Brandon Ingram on your basketball team. How about that epic poster dunk? My goodness, that had me off my couch just I couldn’t believe it. I’m like this dude like what was it a week ago talked about how he’s not where he wants to be with his explosiveness. I think he’s proud of that one. That was probably the best poster of the season. And then the way they were just able to hang in there at the end when the Hornets were making nice plays, hitting their shots again. It looked like they were going to steal one in Toronto. The Raptors, they came up clutch. Brandon Ingram, he was doubled there. Instead of forcing a a tough shot, he finds RJ Barrett who gets the bucket to fall. And then Brandon Ingram, one of his three blocks on the other end at a crucial point of the game. And then how about Barnes going up with it strong when they looked at it to see if the clock had reset, which it did because the play before that he got blocked. So Scotty knew next time I’m going to this basket like I got to go up strong which is exactly what he did. And then how about Scotty man game-winning block. Like that is unbelievable. Literally as I saw that happen I’m like oh they’re going to get the layup. Like this game’s going overtime. But Scotty’s like nah none of that. This is not going to OT. The Hornets are not going to score off this miss. Scotty get that garbage out of here. Like this is the dynamic duo that the Raptors were hoping to see a lot of when they put this duo together. Brandon Ingram 27 points, six rebounds, three assists. Scotty Barnes, 16 points, six assists, six rebounds. How about Scotty Barnes, too? The only player in the NBA to be averaging 1.5 plus steals and blocks this season. Not even WBY has done that. Scotty Barnes doing it with his defense as all five starters finished in doubledigit scoring in this one. Look, it wasn’t pretty. It looked like they were going to squander it there at the end, but this is what good teams do, and that’s what’s really impressed me during the stretch. Like, the Raptors are taking care of business against teams they should beat. And you can always judge a team by how legit, how good they actually are when they go up against these middle of the pack, bottom feeding teams. And it’s so easy to get lost in it all and be complacent and not play hard enough because you know you’re going up against a lesser opponent and end up losing these games. The fact that the Raptors are winning these games, they’re beating opponents that they should handle, I think it says a lot about the legitimacy of this team right now. Like you even look at the game before this, that run that they were on, it’s 8-1 now over the last nine, it was 7-1 before this game. Like all of those wins were by double digits. like they hammered Indiana and it was that one hiccup against Philadelphia that’s an actual good team or else this team’s riding a a 10game winning streak right now. Like it’s insane how they’ve completely just flipped the script and this team’s defense was abysmal coming out of the gate. They were just uh giving up a ton of points and they were they couldn’t stop anything. And you just see something clicked that this team is now committed defensively. Credit has to be given to Scotty Barnes who has anchored this team’s defense. And I mean, start the campaign, right? WBY, he got injured, which obviously sucks. You don’t want to see, but he might be ineligible for NBA awards. If he misses a lot of time, I think Scotty Barnes is going to end up being the front runner for defensive player of the year, man. if he continues this kind of defensive play. I it is a real possibility, especially if this Raptors team continues to rise up in the standings. Speaking of which, I know it’s early. You don’t want to be looking at the standings or maybe you do. They’re they’re in third place and they’re only three games back of the Pistons who have been on a whole other level. They’ve been another surprise story to begin this season, but the way that the Raptors were able to save their season coming out of that 1 and4 start, they’re playing hard. Defensively, they’ve really picked it up. It’s impressive. They’ve definitely, you know, exceeded a lot of expectations and coming into the season, I thought this team was going to be at the very least a playing team. That’s why I was surprised with their one and four start and they could contend for that six spot. Now, you’re looking at this team play in the state of the Eastern Conference where the Cavaliers have looked vulnerable. I mean, many people have the Cavaliers making it to the NBA finals. Raptors are 2 and0 against them this season. The Knicks have looked vulnerable. Are the Pistons legitimate or not? I think they are on the legit side. But the point I’m trying to make is here like the East looks wide open and this is a Raptors team that they’re building chemistry. Knock on wood. Brandon Ingram’s looking good, really good. Everybody’s kind of fitting in nicely. RJ Barrett’s having a big season. Quickley’s now coming along. You’re getting better play from Yak. The bench. How can I forget about the bench? Like the bench has been really solid. Like how about Shed who’s been such a differencemaker on this team and Mamu like looking like one of the best pickups over the summer. Grady had 10 in this one. CB competing hard. Like you can see the Raptors like they’re going to be they’re going to be a like a playoff team like if they keep this up obviously like it’s still really early into the season but there’s opportunity here in the East for them to get one of those top six spots to continue this type of level that they’re on. And there’s a real big opportunity for the Raptors to extend this success that they’re having and build on this hot streak that they’re on. Because you look at the Raptor schedule, it is very, very lenient. They got the 76ers on Wednesday night, a team they can definitely beat this time around. Then they got the Wizards, the Nets, the Cavs, who they’ve beaten twice, as I mentioned already, the Pacers, Hornets before they take on the Knicks. So, there’s many more wins here before the Raptors then got to take on the Knicks on November 30th. And I’m really looking forward to that game. I think that’s going to be a true measuring stick game against one of the elite teams in the East. Coming into the season, I had the Knicks making it to the NBA Finals. So, like that’s the game I want to watch personally to see, okay, like how do the Raptors truly stack up against the Knicks, especially it being at their place. That’s going to be a huge game to watch. But this Raptors team, man, they are getting it done. 13th in defensive rating. Not sure if it’s updated, but at the time of this recording, 13th, their offense has looked apart. One of the better offenses in the NBA right now. They’re sixth at the time of this report in offensive rating. And then you look at the Raptors net rating, they’re seventh. So those are solid all-around numbers. Their defense is getting to a top 10 pace and they’re in the top 10 in both offensive rating and net rating. So that to me is as legitimate as it gets. This team’s been fun to watch and it’s good to finally have winning basketball once again in the six. It’s been a while. We went through some very poor seasons, very down years, a lot of misery. And it’s just nice that the Raptors are having this type of success, which is a buildup of everything that’s happened to this point. And this Brandon Ingram acquisition has looked very, very good to this point. Like he looks like he loves being here. He’s fit in nicely and the type of guy that the Raptors needed to really just round this group together and put this all in place. So, it’s been smooth sailing. You know, obviously in a game like this, you wanted the Raptors to handle their business a bit better, but a win’s a win. Even though it’s ugly, they still were able to win. They clutched up there at the end. Their defense took them home to carry them to that win. And yeah, this team, they’re going to look to keep it rolling, guys. But wanted to jump on here, give you my reaction. This Raptors team is grooving, man. And and it feels good to once again watch some winning basketball. Let me know your thoughts, guys, down below. Drop a like, subscribe to the channel if you’re new. That’s it for me, Signing off. Thank you for watching.

The Toronto Raptors are different this season.

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