The Toronto Raptors can close out the Orlando Magic in Game 5 of their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series on Tuesday night, but history is not on their side.
Or is that even relevant?
In the past, the Raptors have had playoff struggles, showing an inability to come up big when it really counts. Of course, this Toronto team is entirely different than the ones of years prior, and head coach Nick Nurse made sure to point that out when asked about the Raptors' track record being unable to play their best in the postseason:
“This team doesn't? Or this organization? What do you mean?” said Nurse, according to Blake Murphy of The Athletic. “This team, let's see if they can start their own history tomorrow.”
Nurse acknowledged that it would obviously be critical to finish off the Magic as soon as possible:
“Of course it would be valuable,” he said. “You just don't want to screw around in these series. If you lose this one, you're back in Orlando, and you're adding miles, adding stress, whatever it is, to your team. It does make it important, and hopefully we'll realize that.”
The first-year coach then circled back to his original point, clarifying that he was not trying to be confrontational and channeling a well-known Chicago Cubs manager in the process:
“And I'm not trying to be rude in any way. I just want this team to form its identity,” he added. “What's happened in the past has no bearing or relevance to what's happening now, to me. I like to steal Joe Maddon's line and say we don't vibrate on those frequencies of the past.”
Of course, this Raptors team is certainly very different from years past. But for Toronto to truly shake its demons, it needs to dispatch the Magic as quickly as it can.
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