A Tri-Table on the Toronto Raptors 2025-2026 NBA season
We. Are. Back.
Bayyybyyyyy babyyyy!
Not to get all soppy or anything, but, I gotta say, before I go on.
Raptors fans are great.
You all are great.
WE ARE GREAT.
I was in Vancouver for the exhibition game against the Denver Nuggets. People showed out! It was a raucous time. By the looks of things, same in Calgary too.
And, here we are. With a team that seems to be considered by most to be middling (super rude @ Bleacher Report [25th]), still sticking it out. As passionately infuriated as ever about all the wonderful minutiae. Like, no one appreciating Ochai Agbaji’s defence. Or, celebrating Scottie Barnes as one of the best basketball minds in the game. Or, noticing that for the last two years Jakob Pöltl has been top 20 in on/off efficiency in the league.
Goddamnit!
I’ve written about fandom before. I find it such a curious phenomenon. We all gather together – digitally speaking, of course – like a bunch of apes crouching around a fire pit, fiddling about, yelling at each other on how best to build it.
Make it higher! No, wider. You’re suffocating it! Not enough fuel. Wrong type of wood! OOO! AAAHHH !! oOoahhhahhoooahhhahh!!
And how nice is that? How nice is it, that we can all argue with each other about the importance of something so inconsequential – compared to say, like, fire – while at the same time have each other’s back.
Ya, sure, you’ll never see eye-to-eye with the person who wants to trade Scottie Barnes or tank until the cows come home. But if some Chicago Bulls fan walked and started bragging that their team’s future is brighter than the Raptors. Watch the fuck out!
Anyway, props to all you out there for A. still reading this therapy session and B. keeping that passion and interest as intense as ever!
Let’s get it.
~~
So, as a procrastinator of great proportions, I prompted the Raptors Republic writers a bit too late.
As a result, there are only three of us for you to read.
Moi.
El Jefe, Louis Zatzman.
And, the tell-it-how-it-is-no-bullshit, Mete Makarnarci.
A Tri-Table.
Enjoy.
1. We’re humans [and apes]. We all need everything neatly placed in buckets.
How would you title the category of this team heading into this season – and any other team in that category – and why?
Adon
“One Battle After Another“
Other teams included: Boston Celtics, Indiana Pacers, Portland Trailblazers
I’m fresh off Paul Thomas Anderson’s newest flick. Another goddamn masterpiece. And, in all its zany, violent, vigorous, revolutionary spirit, it’s how I see this Toronto Raptors team.
This team is off the beaten path. There’s nothing predictable or mainstream about anything they do. At either end of the floor, really. Offence might be a clusterfuck; defence is supposed to be chaotic. Everyone hates their outlook because of it.
Fine with me. I’m not here for Fast and the Furious 22: Boca Raton Returns anyway. I spit in the cup of predictability. I extol the absurdity; the funk; the innovation; the artistry.
Will it be pretty? Maybe. Art’s subjective anyway [insert pretentious whiny artist voice]. It’ll depend, minute-to-minute, in fact.
Some quarters will flow like a fresh pour of aerated wine. A Brandon Ingram cheese-noodle arm finger roll over two stubbier defenders. Or a low-post, no-looker zinger from Scottie Barnes to a diving RJ Barrett. Other possessions will chunk out like dried puss. Just depends.
It’ll be fun – if you’re into that sort of thing – most importantly. Cause either way you’ll never really know where we’re at. Whether it’s a magical win in Minnesota on a random Thursday in March or a stupid loss to Washington at home in November, you’ll probably be as unsure and unconfident about this team as you were before.
Maybe they’re playoff-bound. Maybe they’re crapping out hard and fast like a bender in Buffalo, and this whole concoction is an ignominious failure. Masai Ujuri’s ghost leaving a final vengeful mark on this franchise.
Whatever. We don’t have a choice in it now. We’re going to have to take it that way. One game at a time. One battle after another.
Lou
“Fighting for dignity, not for championships“
Other teams included: Chicago Bulls (eww), Indiana Pacers (yay!), Detroit Pistons, and kind of no one else?
Mete
“The dawn of a new era”
With Brandon Ingram now in Toronto and ready to take the floor, the Raptors are poised to rejoin the playoff hunt. Ingram looked sharp throughout the preseason and appears more than ready to take the reins as the focal point of the offence.
2. You’re with Bobby Webster and it’s 3am on a dark, grungy, dungeon-house music dance floor and he’s chomping at his jaw a mile a minute, pupils the size of frisbees, and he whispers a confession about this Toronto Raptors team into your ear, what do you think he says?
Adon
First, he yells,
“THIS BEAT IS SICK”
and then,
“I CAN’T FEEL MY TONGUE”
and then,
“I think I might trade Scottie Barnes…”
…
Okay, remember. This is a drug-binged, sleep-deprived confessional. And, it’s Bobby talking. Not me. Okay, so don’t @ me.
But, like, if the premise here is that there is some kernel of truth deep down in the unspoken subconsciousness of our newest General Manager, then maybe, just maybe, that’s something he’s mulling over. Again, him, not me.
As has been said, 1000 bajillion times on every podcast and article the past few months, the Raptors roster and finances are a bit…gummed up. That’s not to say they won’t naturally resolve themselves. Like, by way of winning, for example. But it’s possible they’ll need a little oomph to clear it all up.
There’s a world where this franchise needs one of those multi-million-dollar-consultancy-firm-audit-type reviews of what the fuck this team is and what the fuck is this team planning to do in the next few years, and Bobby reads line 47 of said review’s 60 page PDF report on How to Unfuck the Circumstances of Your Current NBA Roster where it clearly states in bold at line 47:
- Trade Scottie Barnes
And then, Bobby after never thinking about doing such a ludicrous thing for such a rare, talented, young All-Star, panics, says fuck it, and does that very such ludicrous thing.
Why? Well, when you remove Scottie Barnes from the equation, maybe then, according to this consultancy firm – not me to emphasize here [emphasis added] – the roster and finances are not so gummed up any more.
That whoever fills Scottie Barnes’ sudden, deeply grieved vacancy is someone more conducive to whatever the sum of this roster’s parts could be.
Like, if Milwaukee calls. [Remember, this is all in Bobby Webster’s super-high subconsciousness and/or a consultancy firm’s objectively analytical list of conclusions and not me saying this]. And they say, we want to do Barnes and stuff for Giannis Antetokounmpo.?
Or, Phoenix calls. [Jesus, Bobby, this is really depraved stuff, man]. And, they proffer Devin Booker for Barnes and stuff?
Or Sacramento calls…Okay, Bobby, time to go home.
It makes some sense. This roster, and this team’s vision, looks a little bit clearer when a primary scoring numero uno enters the picture. Everyone else, Brandon Ingram, Immanuel Quickley, and RJ Barrett are promptly slotted into a hierarchy. Right now, that tiering is a little less clear – depending on who you ask and what element of the offence your asking about.
But, of course, none of that would ever happen…
Lou
“We might have made a mistake in how we handled the Siakam-Anunoby-VanVleet core.” [still hurts…]
Mete
“Look, we know three-point shooting isn’t our greatest strength, but our compete level is going to be off the charts all season.”
[Mete’s sober vision of a dungeon dance floor allows for the most level-headed honesty from Bobby]
Bobby clearly loves how this roster has come together and believes in the team’s identity.
3. A Tyrese Haliburton-heel-of-the-rim-12-feet-in-the-air-game-winner prediction for the NBA.
Adon
I think the Toronto Raptors make the playoffs.
Not Play-In. The Playoffs, straight up.
I’m always too optimistic, I admit. I suppose, when one stares deep, deep, deep within and nothing else beyond, one gets a little too precious about that one thing.
It’s a problem, probably. I’ve got some problems, definitely.
Whatever.
I’ll retort with the fact that I never truly believed in those Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan years either. Despite their regular-season success, I doubted their true potential. I can be cynical, I promise.
Besides, I’ve some sound, solid, rock-hard logic here too.
The thing is, as a degenerate gambler, if I see something in the market that is out of sorts – according to my own analysis – I pounce.
And, I feeeel like, I’m seeing a significant market irregularity with this Toronto Raptors team.
As I said earlier, most pundits have Toronto as a bottom-tier team. That, after Cleveland, Detroit, New York, Atlanta, Orlando, it will be one of Boston, Philadelphia, Indiana, or Milwaukee to fill the sixth and final assured playoff seed.
That’s agreeable. Those four were all in the Playoffs last year – or would have if healthy, in the case of Philly. There’s no reason to think, in this stinky-ass Eastern Conference, that they couldn’t all return again.
But, I would also argue there’s no reason Toronto couldn’t either. Philadelphia is never healthy; Joel Embiid and Paul George are perpetually injured. Indiana and Boston are missing their superstars. And, Milwaukee, according to The Ringer’s Top 100 NBA players list, has only two top 100 players on their roster, whereas Toronto has four (not including Immanuel Quickley, who did not make the list).
In fact, there’s a very plausible future scenario here where multiple Raptors – starters or bench – make sizable leaps. Brandon Ingram has many haters to prove wrong; so too do Barrett and Quickley. Jamal Shead could steal IQ’s job; Gradey Dick could pop as the sixth man; Collin Murray-Boyles could emerge as a rookie sensation. Heck, Scottie Barnes could even return to his All-Star form of old.
All of that could happen. None of that could happen. Some of that could happen.
That’s enough for me to dabble into the futures market and stake a claim on this team sneaking into the sixth seed.
Lou
The Golden State Warriors win another championship.
It had to be unlikely, right!?
Steph Curry remains one of the greatest offensive weapons in basketball, and Al Horford is a heck of an addition (given health).
Mete
The Toronto Raptors are poised to finish as a top-four seed in the Eastern Conference by season’s end. With New York, Milwaukee, and Cleveland looking like near-locks for the top three, the battle for the fourth spot could come down to Toronto and Orlando. The Magic are an impressive young team, but with Brandon Ingram in the mix and the Raptors rounding into form, Toronto has the edge to claim that spot.
4. A Pat Beverley-Trae Young Beefy Take for the masses.
Adon
The NBA collective finally quits on LeBron James.
I dunno. Maybe I’m just taking advantage of this question/your readership to complain.
I cannot stand LeBron James.
Never could.
The flopping; the lying; the complaining; the self-centredness. All of it. Utterly unbearable.
I get what’s going on here. NBA players are celebrities. Celebrities thrive on the promotion of their own brand. LeBron James is the celebrity of celebrities. Ergo, LeBron James is going to promote his own brand more than any other.
I get it.
The thing is, he’s always been so bad at it. At least, in taste. The conceit and the persona-crafting and the self-centeredness is just so transparent and ineffective. To me, at least.
It was unquestionable before. LeBron’s status.
He was the greatest player on earth. A two-way monster. A clutch God. An multi-time NBA champion and MVP. His supremacy painted over all those warts and lumps of self-aggrandizement.
But now things are different. He’s at the tail-end of his career. Less and less success leaves less and less room to be…annoying.
The credit one holds as a Superstar or celebrity is tenuous. Fleeting. Just ask Hawk Tuah Girl.
Lebron’s been successful for so long, we kind of forget how true it can be for even him. But if you’re not playing cause of old-man back injuries [no hate on that, I feel that, literally]; and, if you’re not the best player on your team; and, if your team is gonna probably be mediocre at best. Then that celebrity credit one collects burns up real fast.
Especially, if you’re…annoying.
Let’s run through the last little while for him, shall we?
First, we saw this summer the same old meaningless speculation about what LeBron is going to do and where he’s going to finish his career dominate NBA media, despite him opting in to his $52.6 million contract. If this was of real concern, would he not have opted out? Howard Beck covered the tedium of this very well.
Then, there was all this reported gobblygook about LeBron meeting with people, to start talking about the potential of starting a new basketball league. Kinda whack. But whatever.
Then, [ugh I just wretched writing about this], LeBron teases an upcoming “second decision” leading some people to think he’s retiring – and to buy tickets on speculation as a result. Only to then reveal it as the lamest fucking commercial I can ever imagine.
That really sums it all up. On the one hand, LeBron is more protective and particular about his “legacy” than any athlete ever. And, it’s not really close. While on the other hand, at the first opportunity to make a buck [again, no hate, do what you gotta do for those dolla bills], he tricks out one of the most monumental – and abhorred – moments in sports history.
Classless, really.
Add a recent story at The Ringer talking about LeBron’s diva status – and pile of random lies over the years – and cold-shouldering of Russell Westbrook – the guy he asked Los Angeles to trade for – and I really feel like this is the beginning of the end for him.
Especially, if LeBron starts doing what he always does: be annoying.
If LeBron starts wanting out of Los Angeles, or starts demanding the Lakers improve their roster, or starts turning cold towards Luka Dončić, I could see the world turning on LeBron.
And, if LeBron sniffs out his falling from NBA divinity, I wonder if he’ll call it quits before it all comes crashing down on top of him.
Lou
If I’m the lead decision-maker of a team around the league, I wouldn’t be afraid of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Like, at all. [Holy, this is Chef Boyardee beefy]
For years, teams refused to make all-in moves because the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers were just so good that they didn’t think they’d have a chance. I don’t think the Thunder are so frightening. Their playoff performance was far from infallible.
If I’m the Los Angeles Lakers, or the Warriors, or the Cavs, or the Denver Nuggets, or a few other teams, I would consider this potentially my year.
Mete
The Raptors may have struck gold with last year’s trade for Brandon Ingram. He’s not just a short-term boost—he’s quickly becoming the centrepiece of a strong foundation in Toronto.
The team ended last season on a high note defensively, and while preseason success should be taken with caution, their 4-2 record shows promising signs of chemistry and momentum.
Anything less than a top-six finish and at least two playoff wins this year would feel like a major letdown. [Mete covering his bases on predictions]
5. What is the Toronto Raptors’ record by April 12, 2026? And Play-In/Playoff/Mayan Riviera, where does it all end?
Adon
The Raptors end up 46-36 as a sixth seed.
They’re knocked out in the first round by the Orlando Magic in five.
Great success!
Lou
43-39.
Sixth in the East, and a clean playoff spot.
Mete
The Raptors are set to flip last season’s 32-50 record into a 50-32 campaign. [No cautious optimism here!]
With that kind of turnaround, they should comfortably secure a playoff spot—no play-in required.
While they may, ultimately, fall in the second round, this season will mark a clear step forward and a statement that Toronto is back on the rise.
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