It's possible. Yes jaded Raptors fans, come April the Raptors, the TORONTO RAPTORS could be the #1 seed in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association.
No I'm not drunk or high or... what was the 3rd thing you said? Yes I know its only been about a dozen or so games and in that they haven't really beaten anyone of consequences (a Grizzlies team battling influenza doesn't count, stop playing Spin The Bottle Memphis!) and lost their only true test when they got pounded by the Bulls but this isn't outside the realm of possibility and let me explain why.
1 - The East has no idea what it's doing
This argument is as old as time itself but the Eastern Conference has pretty much always been weaker. Yeah teams have won titles and even had dynasties (Detroit, Chicago, Boston most recently Miami) but overall from top to bottom the conference isn't as good as the West. What this means for the team that resides north of the border, is that there are a bunch of games THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO WIN! They can feast against the teams who aren't all that good (which is most of them). Currently as I write this there are only 5 teams (not including the Raptors) above .500 in the conference (Washington, Chicago, Miami, Atlanta and Milwaukee who are technically right at .500).... 5!!! There are 15 teams total and I don't expect 10 to lose more than they win, but that's still an awful lot of awful teams they have to face (and beat!)
2 - Injuries
For some reason Derrick Rose can't stay upright. You can say it's bad luck, you can say he's made of jelly but for whatever the reason is, he can't be counted on and without him the Bulls (still a really good team) are beatable. Add that to the fact that Tom Thibodeau doesn't know what rest is (Poor every down back Jimmy Butler) and the #1 team in many people's estimation, is toppleable. Continue to add the fact that over in Cleveland they're still struggling to make it work, I personally believe they will, but by in the time they do figure things out, the hole they've dug may be too deep (Dig up stupid). Washington doesn't seem to match up well with us, in 72 games since the Raps came into the league we're 38-34 vs the Wiz including taking 7 of the last 10 meetings and Lance Stephenson seems to be a cancer for the Hornets (and in general) which leaves the conference WIDEass OPEN.
3 - Camaraderie - We're actually much better than we're ready to admit
This is probably the most overlooked reason of them all. Since trading Rudy Gay on December 9th of last season the Raptors are 52 -24! The core of our team has been through a lot together and we're establishing a style and culture of ball movement and tough play that's easy for people to want be apart of. Our internal improvement and growth doesn't go unnoticed by fan, casual and hardcore alike. Every year, Demar has increased his Points Per Game as well as his attempts at the charity stripe and his assist totals (my biggest concern) as well as improving defensively. Something you can't measure is how much one WANTS to win. All professionals want to win (the 76ers don't count) but the longer you play with a group of guys the deeper that desire (hunger is too cliche) runs.
So there you have it. I know our team has tons of holes (we can't keep playing Tyler Hansbrough and Chuck Hayes big minutes and expect success) but with the Eastern conference having even more holes than a... holey, thing (if you don't use Milhouse it IS hard) there is a good chance that the Raptors can separate themselves enough to be the #1 seed and have all roads to the finals run through the 6ix.
Jelani "2 Easy" Philbert
@ItsJus2Easy
No I'm not drunk or high or... what was the 3rd thing you said? Yes I know its only been about a dozen or so games and in that they haven't really beaten anyone of consequences (a Grizzlies team battling influenza doesn't count, stop playing Spin The Bottle Memphis!) and lost their only true test when they got pounded by the Bulls but this isn't outside the realm of possibility and let me explain why.
1 - The East has no idea what it's doing
This argument is as old as time itself but the Eastern Conference has pretty much always been weaker. Yeah teams have won titles and even had dynasties (Detroit, Chicago, Boston most recently Miami) but overall from top to bottom the conference isn't as good as the West. What this means for the team that resides north of the border, is that there are a bunch of games THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO WIN! They can feast against the teams who aren't all that good (which is most of them). Currently as I write this there are only 5 teams (not including the Raptors) above .500 in the conference (Washington, Chicago, Miami, Atlanta and Milwaukee who are technically right at .500).... 5!!! There are 15 teams total and I don't expect 10 to lose more than they win, but that's still an awful lot of awful teams they have to face (and beat!)
2 - Injuries
For some reason Derrick Rose can't stay upright. You can say it's bad luck, you can say he's made of jelly but for whatever the reason is, he can't be counted on and without him the Bulls (still a really good team) are beatable. Add that to the fact that Tom Thibodeau doesn't know what rest is (Poor every down back Jimmy Butler) and the #1 team in many people's estimation, is toppleable. Continue to add the fact that over in Cleveland they're still struggling to make it work, I personally believe they will, but by in the time they do figure things out, the hole they've dug may be too deep (Dig up stupid). Washington doesn't seem to match up well with us, in 72 games since the Raps came into the league we're 38-34 vs the Wiz including taking 7 of the last 10 meetings and Lance Stephenson seems to be a cancer for the Hornets (and in general) which leaves the conference WIDE
3 - Camaraderie - We're actually much better than we're ready to admit
This is probably the most overlooked reason of them all. Since trading Rudy Gay on December 9th of last season the Raptors are 52 -24! The core of our team has been through a lot together and we're establishing a style and culture of ball movement and tough play that's easy for people to want be apart of. Our internal improvement and growth doesn't go unnoticed by fan, casual and hardcore alike. Every year, Demar has increased his Points Per Game as well as his attempts at the charity stripe and his assist totals (my biggest concern) as well as improving defensively. Something you can't measure is how much one WANTS to win. All professionals want to win (the 76ers don't count) but the longer you play with a group of guys the deeper that desire (hunger is too cliche) runs.
So there you have it. I know our team has tons of holes (we can't keep playing Tyler Hansbrough and Chuck Hayes big minutes and expect success) but with the Eastern conference having even more holes than a... holey, thing (if you don't use Milhouse it IS hard) there is a good chance that the Raptors can separate themselves enough to be the #1 seed and have all roads to the finals run through the 6ix.
Jelani "2 Easy" Philbert
@ItsJus2Easy
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