Amid disarray in NBA, Raptors betting on controlled chaos
CBC
Chaos reigns in the NBA.
Look no further than last season's Finals combatants: the champion Warriors are dealing with fallout from Draymond Green punching teammate Jordan Poole in practice, while the Celtics are helmed by a new head coach after Ime Udoka was suddenly suspended for the year just before training camp.
Given that, plus owner drama in Phoenix, trade-demand drama in Brooklyn and more, the question that will define the coming season may well be: is it possible to reign amidst chaos?
The Toronto Raptors are betting that the answer is yes — if that chaos is controlled.
Compared to the above teams, the Raptors' off-season barely made a peep. When they tip off their season at home against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night (7:30 p.m. ET), it'll be mostly the same cast of characters.
The starters will likely be Fred VanVleet, Gary Trent Jr., Scottie Barnes, OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam. Except for opening night, those five began every game in which they were all healthy together a year ago.
WATCH | Raptors eliminated by 76ers in Game 6:
Toronto's most impactful off-season addition may be Otto Porter Jr., a former Warrior who should inject some much-needed shooting. Its most notable addition may have been Juancho Hernangomez, who is best known for starring as Bo Cruz in the movie Hustle.
The Raptors spent their lone draft pick, a second rounder, on centre Christian Koloko, who was born in the same Cameroon city as Siakam. Koloko instantly became the team's only seven-footer.
The bench will feature steady veterans Porter Jr. and Thaddeus Young alongside a pair of highly talented but mistake-prone centres in Chris Boucher and Precious Achiuwa.
Those are all the controlled variables — elements that proved they can work in harmony as the Raptors captured the East's fifth seed in last season's playoffs before falling in six games to the Philadelphia 76ers.
"I just kind of sense a little urgency, I sense some togetherness and I sense some real intensity this summer, and I think those are all three really good words going into a training camp," Nurse said during media day. "I think the team's shaping the identity that showed up a little bit late last year. They know who they are and are looking to expand it. It was a good summer."
The Raptors are a basketball experiment: instead of "position-less basketball," Toronto assembled a roster of players that all essentially play the same position.
That position is vaguely defined — reigning rookie of the year Scottie Barnes, ostensibly your prototypical six-foot-seven forward, was listed at guard/forward on the team's season-opening player list.
