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The Toronto Raptors finally reached the promise land this past season, winning their first NBA championship. But unlike most other teams who have dreams of repeating, the Raptors may end up fighting just to make the playoffs.
Toronto lost its everything in Kawhi Leonard this summer, as Leonard bolted for the Los Angeles Clippers in free agency. Danny Green left, too, opting to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Remnants of the Raptors' title team still remain. Veterans Kyle Lowry, Serge Ibaka and Marc Gasol are still on the roster, and Pascal Siakam seems poised for a breakout season.
But without Leonard, it's hard to imagine Toronto doing anything that consequential during the 2019-20 campaign.
As a matter of fact, some have questioned whether or not the Raptors should completely blow it up, as Lowry, Ibaka and Gasol are all entering the final years of their deals.
Toronto has said that it won't be doing that, but if February comes around and the Raptors are struggling to even stay in the playoff hunt, you have to wonder if Masai Ujiri will ultimately pull the trigger on a couple of deals.
It should be noted that Toronto plays in the Eastern Conference, so it will be a playoff contender even in its current state. But do the Raptors want to simply make the postseason and then lose in the first round? Because that's probably what will end up happening.
It's not like Toronto was able to add anyone of real significance this summer, either.
The Raptors landed young forwards Stanley Johnson and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson in free agency, two defensive specialists who can guard multiple positions but can't really do much of anything offensively.
They almost seem redundant with OG Anunoby, who, at the very least, can shoot it a bit from the perimeter and should play a pivotal role on the team now that Leonard is gone.
Toronto seems to be banking on a big jump from Siakam, who won the Most Improved Player of the Year award this past season and was, by most accounts, the Raptors' second-best player during their championship run.
Siakam is certainly very good. He plays both ends of the floor, and the improvement he showed offensively from Year 2 to Year 3 was one of the most drastic transformations I've seen in recent memory.
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He can shoot, he can post and he can drive, and he is a tremendous finisher.
That's all well and good. But what about the rest of the roster?
Lowry and Gasol are clearly breaking down, and while Ibaka can still play at a fairly high level, the consistency just isn't there, and he is more of a complementary piece to a contender than a go-to guy on a fringe playoff team.
Looking at the rest of the East, the Bucks, 76ers, Celtics, Pacers and Nets should all be better than the Raptors, leaving them to fight with squads like the Magic, Pistons and Heat for the final playoff spots in the conference.
Even coming off of a championship, Toronto is no lock to make the playoffs, and it will be relying on experience more than sheer talent as it does try to make a postseason push.
A postseason push that probably won't even be worth it.
Put it this way: if the East weren't so terrible, the Raptors would be complete afterthoughts. This team likely wouldn't even challenge for a playoff spot in the West, barring another huge jump from Siakam.
And even if Siakam does take another leap, Toronto is absolutely, positively not a title contender. There just isn't enough top-end talent on this roster anymore; not with a group of aging veterans that are clearly on their last legs.
The Raptors are probably the fourth-best team in their own division, which generally does not amount to a legitimate contender.
Ujiri went for it all last season, and it paid off. And you know what? It's not even like he gave up that much for Leonard, as the Spurs already seem to be growing tired of DeMar DeRozan, and Jakob Poeltl doesn't look to be anything more than just a decent big.
But almost everyone knew that Toronto had a one-year window with Leonard. Not even a ring was able to convince Kawhi to choose the cold city of Toronto over sunny Los Angeles, and now, the Raptors are dealing with the aftershocks.
Not that they didn't expect it.
Toronto should win in the neighborhood of 40-45 games, which could be enough to get the Raptors into the playoffs…if they don't decide to throw in the towel beforehand.
