Before I dive right in, I want to commend the gritty effort that this Raptors squad has put in to reach this point in the season. Honestly, few — maybe only the true die-hard Raptors faithful — expected them to be a top-five team in the East at this stage, with a strong 32-23 record to date. They’ve already surpassed their modest 30-52 record from last season. Even the man in charge, head coach Darko Rajakovic, has echoed this sentiment before.

Being in the position they’re in now is already a major win. Looking ahead to the bigger picture, it seems highly likely that the Raptors will be firmly in the playoff mix come April. Unless, by some unforeseen and terrible circumstance, they experience a significant drop in the standings after the All-Star break.

Speaking of the All-Star break, the Raptors head into it with a 3-2 record so far in February, having lost their most recent game to the Detroit Pistons on February 11, 113-95. It was a disappointing loss for the Raptors. On the Pistons’ side, considering their recent scuffle with the Charlotte Hornets, they were going into the game without their bigs, Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart, who had been suspended afterward. Meanwhile, Toronto finally welcomed Jakob Poeltl back after nearly two months on the sidelines, though he was limited to a minutes restriction.

Unfortunately, this long-awaited return wasn’t enough to help Toronto overcome the Pistons’ hump. Big man reserve Paul Reed stepped up in a huge role as a starter and dropped an impressive 22 points on 10-for-17 shooting, making things extremely difficult for the Raptors to contain. Cade Cunningham also had a lights-out shooting night, going 6-for-11 from deep, which only added to the Raptors’ burden.

The Pistons are the Eastern Conference’s ultimate powerhouse, holding the first seed. So, looking at a loss from that perspective might give the Raptors a bit more leeway. And honestly, you’d be justified in thinking so to some extent. However, it’s very concerning to consider how the Raptors have looked this season against the NBA’s top teams.

Raptors’ struggles highlight the gap between them and the NBA’s top teams

So far in the 2025-26 campaign, the Toronto Raptors have a 4-13 record against the NBA’s top-10 teams. As Raptors beat reporter Josh Lewenberg pointed out on X, if you exclude Toronto’s season sweep over Cleveland this year (3-0), they sit at a disappointing 1-13 record. That only win would be the razor-tight victory over Oklahoma City last month. And of those 13 losses, 10 have come at home.

Otherwise, the Raptors have boasted a 28-10 record against the NBA’s rest. Still, this relatively weak record is definitely cause for concern among fans who might have reservations about how well this core can compete against teams that simply overpower Toronto’s otherwise effective strategies and schemes. Mind you, this is just the regular season also, and the competitive edge gets a lot tighter and tougher when the playoffs come around.

I have no doubt in my mind that this Raptors squad will give it their all to keep things within reach. But even if they get past the first round, facing monster teams like the New York Knicks, Boston Celtics, and Detroit Pistons on the other side, the odds are probably going to be stacked against Toronto. Even potential first-round matchups against the 76ers, Magic, and the slightly revamped Cavaliers pose formidable opposition for the Raptors.

Ultimately, it really comes down to how fans and especially the Raptors’ front office view a successful season. As I mentioned at the start of this piece, Darko Rajakovic has said before that this is still somewhat of a rebuilding year that has just exceeded expectations. When you consider that this team was in the lottery just last June, maybe we shouldn’t overblow the narrative. Nonetheless, the fact that Toronto has struggled against the NBA’s best should be somewhat of a reality check of the competitive gap between them and the upper echelon.