Gameday: Celtics @ Raptors, February 25th

The Toronto Raptors are slated to face off against the defending champion Boston Celtics tonight, as they look to pick up their second upset victory in a row. Boston’s reputation precedes them, they have one of the best, if not the best team in the league, their defense is lockdown, their offense can smother you in a heartbeat, and they are just a lot to handle. Toronto has been no stranger to punching up this season, even in their last game they stunned the Phoenix Suns.

With this team getting more and more continuity, it has made life easier. This is the first time this season that Immanuel Quickley is playing for an extended stretch; his presence gives more life to the offense, and with Scottie Barnes playing All-efens level defense for the last couple of months, it has empowered some wonderful things on the floor. All this being said, it is going to take a herculean effort to pull out a win over Boston, but anything is possible.

Raptors Outlook: 18-39 | 13th in Eastern Conference | Off rating: 110.2 (25th) | Def rating: 115.6 (25th) | Net rating: -5.5 (25th)

Raptors Previous Results

Vs Phoenix W 127-109

Vs Miami L 120-111

Vs Cleveland L 131-108

@ Philadelphia W 106-103

@ Houston L 94-87

Boston’s fearsome defense has the talent to take away what Toronto does best on offense, which is score in the paint, especially in transition. If you manage to get past the pestering Derrick White at the point-of-attack, and then maneuver your way around the outstretched arms of Jayson Tatum helping at the nail, you still have to run into a 7 foot tall latvian unicorn named kristaps Porzingis waiting to send your shot into the 5th row. Similar to the Phoenix game, Toronto’s shooting is going to have to be better than average to pull out this win. Barnes is going to have his hands full with Tatum as his primary matchup most likely, but he has shown that he can take these star matchups and have success in them. The offensive potency that Toronto showed in their last game will be what is required to win against Boston tonight, it is an uphill task but you have to somewhat be able to slightly keep up with their scoring if you hope to defeat them.

The Celtics have the 5th best defense in the league, they’re extremely versatile on that end, and they can switch most actions while not having their rim protection suffer as a result of it. They are great at making rotations, closing out under control, and essentially blowing up the actions teams try to run against them, they often camp Porzingis by the rim, while the others fly around on defense, usually leaving poor shooters open. Toronto absolutely has to shoot well tonight.

Celtics Outlook: 41-16 | 2th in Eastern Conference | Off rating: 119 (3rd) | Def rating: 109.6 (5th) | Net rating: 9.5 (3rd)

Celtics Previous Results

vs New York W 118-105

@ Philadelphia W 124- 104

vs San Antonio W 116-103

@ Miami W 103-85

vs New York W 131-104

The Boston Celtics don’t just beat teams, they destroy and demoralize them. Being on the other end of a Celtics offensive explosion can only be compared to being in the ocean during high tide. No matter what you do it feels like you can’t stop drowning. Everyone knows by now that Boston takes by far the most threes in the NBA at 48.3 per game, and makes the most per game at 17.8. To survive that volume from behind the arc has proved too difficult for most of the teams in the league. Even if you do manage to survive it, you still have to deal with the scoring and driving from Tatum.

Tatum is the engine that makes this car go, his driving and improved playmaking open up plenty of Boston’s shooters for the triples that they knock down. They also have Jaylen Brown who isn’t an easy man to stop in his own right. Boston has so many players who can put the ball on the floor and keep advantages alive, always looking to attack closeouts, like White. With so much skill on the floor, it makes it tough for defenses to stay in front and rotate around. Barnes will have to be the anchor of this defense yet again, and the attention to detail when closing out to their shooters has to be top-tier as well.

Game Info

Tip-Off: 7:00 p.m. ET

Television: TSN

Radio: Sportsnet 590 The Fan