For all the talk of tanking across the NBA, the league and the teams couldn’t afford the sheer amount of talent that came into the league. Parity arrived at their doorstep. There’s 3 or 4 teams in the NBA who you should beat, but the rest of them are filled with stars who can steal a game or scrappy teams with underrated talent and a hell of a lot of gumption.
The darlings of the early season, the Pacers and the Jazz, are on the outs of the postseason. They can still get you on any night. Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving’s chances at the play-in currently sit at 6-percent. Crazy!
Man, when the play-in comes around, that thing is going to be absolutely laden with stars. Before that happens though, the Raptors have to finish the season strong. The Hornets, being one of the teams you should beat, took the L yesterday and have now accounted for 10-percent of Toronto’s wins on the season. The Raptors, with the toughest schedule (by opponent record) in the league, could possibly see some of the best teams in the league become one of the easiest opponents out there.
So, how do you alter, transmogrify, or change one of the best teams in the league into one of the worst? You take away the will to win, and increase the incentive to maintain. This won’t be new to anyone, we’ve been seeing it for awhile – teams are far more likely to play their end of bench players at the end of the year if their seed is already determined. Protect the stars before the biggest games of the season.
Because of the shape of the schedule — where the Raptors are playing yet another doubleheader, this time against the 2nd seeded Celtics — the Raptors can help inform how the top end of the Eastern Conference shakes out. Two games against the Celtics, one against the Bucks, and in that order. With the Celtics 3 games behind the Bucks, with 3 games left for both teams, and owning the tiebreaker between the two, a Raptors win or a Bucks win (they’re playing the Bulls) will clinch the East for Milwaukee.
I suspect — and who knows, really, but I suspect — that of seeds 6, 7, and 8 the order of preference to face would be: the Nets who are locked in at 6, the 8 seed, and then the 7 seed. Not that I expect there to be many Nets fans reading this (if you are, sorry), but in comparison to the Raptors, Heat, and the Hawks – I think they standout as the weakest team.
The Bucks can’t possibly fall to seed #3, the Celtics more than likely can’t reach seed #1, and for those reasons the Celtics will have hardly any incentive to win; and with the last game of the season being a historically significant “rest your guys” spot when teams have a determined seed? The Raptors have a great opportunity to win games to close the season and give themselves the upper hand in the play-in tournament.
Not every team tries to game the system in the standings, so I wouldn’t expect to see all 3 games against rested lineups, but it’s probably fair to expect it in two out of the final three games.
However, this could all just be end of season hypotheticals where nothing bears out. It is funny to think the Raptors could close 3-0 against two teams they’ve gone 0-5 against to this point in the season, though. Anyway. We’ll see.
Have a blessed day.
