The Toronto Raptors were able to take care of business on Tuesday night when they took on the Orlando Magic on the road without one of their two All-Stars and leading scorer DeMar DeRozan. The nine-year veteran had been dealing with a thigh injury, but according to many injury reports, the Raptors simply opted to rest DeRozan against a bad Magic team, especially being on the front-end of a back-to-back.
With the Raptors traveling to Cleveland to take on LeBron James and the Cavaliers on Wednesday night, head coach Dwane Casey said DeRozan would return to the lineup for the matchup between the Eastern Conference heavyweights.
DeMar DeRozan will play tonight against #Cavs
— Chris Fedor (@ChrisFedor) March 21, 2018
DeRozan missed his first game of the season on Tuesday to prepare for a game that would normally serve as a measuring stick for both teams. This time, however, the Raptors are absolutely rolling and the Cavs are very banged up.
Cleveland will be without Larry Nance Jr., Tristan Thompson, Rodney Hood, and Cedi Osman, four players who have played important roles in the rotation and will likely continue to do so when they return from injury. On top of that, All-Star forward Kevin Love will be playing in his second game back from an extended absence with a fracture in his hand.
The Raptors are pursuing consistency from their group as the regular season winds down and playoff basketball begins. Their group has played well all season, but the playoffs boast a variety of different challenges.
The Cavs, meanwhile, are just trying to get healthy over the next few weeks. This will be the second time that Kevin Love has taken the floor with new teammates George Hill and Jordan Clarkson while still having not logged a minute alongside Larry Nance Jr. or Rodney Hood.
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