'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
The Toronto Raptors and the Cleveland Cavaliers meet up in the postseason for the third season running, and for the second consecutive time at the Conference Semifinals stage. Both teams got pushed to the limit in the first round by opponents who matched up well against them, but the Raptors have 3 extra days of rest and homecourt advantage this time around.
The departure of Kyrie Irving from the Cavs' ranks last summer makes this a much more even series than the last two. In fact, given both teams' performances up to this point of the season, it could be argued that the Raptors are legitimately the favorites to advance through this round for the first time in recent memory.
The Raptors' bench has been a big difference-maker for them in the postseason too, and their All-Star duo of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan have so far been exceptional. There's something about this version of the Raptors which does make it seem very different to what it was over the past 4 years.
What has not changed, however, is the looming, daunting challenge in their path - a 6'9", 250-pound beast who is unequivocally the best player in the world today. Especially given The King's superhuman display in the first round, when he willed the Cavs past the Pacers who outscored them by 40 points over the course of the series.
LeBron James, however, has the least help that he's had in the last 8 postseasons, with none of the other Cavaliers touching the 20-point mark even once despite having 7 opportunities to do so. The series will rely primarily on how well the Cavs respond to their respective matchups on offense, and whether they can get over the anemic displays of the previous round to give their leader enough support this time around.
Let's take a look at the factors that will determine how the games play out this time around:
Strengths
Raptors
The Raptors were the only team in the league this regular season to finish among the top 5 in both defensive and offensive efficiency. Their net rating on a per-100-possessions basis was 3rd behind only the Houston Rockets and the Golden State Warriors. By all accounts, they are a team which has the capability to win the game with a strong performance on one end of the court - or also on both sides of the ball.
They play a run-and-game style of offense that has allowed them to maximize the impact of Kyle Lowry - a deadly spot-up shooter whose gravity opens things up inside the 2-point region for the rest of the team to capitalize on overcompensating defences. They share the ball remarkably well as a team and improvise on a per-game basis in half-court sets to bring the best out of each individual on offense.
As a team, the Raptors are currently first among surviving playoff teams in 3-point percentage at 41%. They are averaging 11 made 3s per game - the 3rd-highest figure among teams remaining in the bracket.
Their switch-heavy scheme on defense, given their personnel, serves them remarkably well. The likes of Lowry, Ibaka, Poetl, Siakam, Anunoby, Delon Wright and VanVleet are all capable of handling a variety of defensive assignments.
Cavaliers
At their best, the Cavaliers are a fast-paced team that plays an exciting brand of basketball and has dominant rebounders in interior defense to cut off possessions. They have an intriguing bench unit which is capable of going toe-to-toe with its best competitor in the league on its night - the Cavs have a better net rating with LeBron off the court than with him on it for the first time in 4 seasons.
The likes of Kevin Love, George Hill, JR Smith, Rodney Hood, Jordan Clarkson and Kyle Korver are all capable of getting really hot. The Cavs ran a Larry Nance-LeBron James pick-and-roll combo with great effect for most of the first round, and they could actually do a better job against the Raptors who will often have slow-footed Valanciunas and Poetl on the floor playing center.
Weaknesses
Raptors
The Raptors' Achilles heel for the latter part of their season was their inability to execute an efficient offense during clutch situations in tight games. Their game devolved mostly into throwing the ball to Lowry or DeRozan in such times, and they paid the price for such predictability with a couple of extra Ls on their record.
Their other weakness is the lack of a top-15 player on their roster. For all their virtues, of which there are many, DeRozan and Lowry are necessarily 2 of the less flashy players to feature on All-Star rosters. While DeRozan can certainly play like an All-World player on a given day, such days are hard to come by. While facing the Beast of the East, you do need a player to give you a consistent scoring punch in the manner that LeBron provides to the Cavs
Cavaliers
The Cavaliers have seemed unable to play both ends of the floor at the same time for the length of this season. While they were a rank bad defensive team during the regular season, their offense was stellar and that helped them to a 4th-place finish in the Eastern Conference standings. Their defense came together in the playoffs, but their offense has, in turn, fallen off a cliff.
The Cavs averaged 94.9 points per game through their first-round series against the Pacers. Such a rate isn't going to cut it against the Raptors, who put up 109.2 ppg through 6 games against the Washington Wizards.
The Cavs also lack a true rim protector, and this will hurt them while playing against the likes of Valanciunas, Ibaka, Poetl, and Siakam - who're all capable offensive players.
Opportunities and Threats
Raptors
The Raptors' bench unit has fared much better than the Cavs' second unit through the course of this season, and that will probably not change during this series. The 6-7 minutes that James sits on the bench might be all that the Raptors need to either take an unassailable lead, or to convert a deficit into an advantage.
Their 3-point shooting has been really good so far, and the Cavs weren't particularly great at closing out on 3-pointers during their series against the Pacers. Both Lowry and DeRozan are able playmakers on whom the Cavs' trapping strategy, so successful against Victor Oladipo, will probably not reap the same dividends.
When James is on the court, however, the Raptors do not have a reliable player to guard him for most of the game. Granted, rookie OG Anunoby has flashed lockdown potential, but when was the last time you heard a rookie slow down a GOAT-tier player? It's far more likely that we'll hear commentators say the words "LeBron James with no regard for human life!" than "James coughs it up to OG".
Cavaliers
Kevin Love has developed into a really reliable spot-up 3-point shooter over the years. Granted, he's not having the greatest of runs at the moment, but while taking the floor as the center in their offensive scheme, he will have the opportunity to draw the likes of Poetl and Valanciunas out to the perimeter. This, in turn, will open up the lane for a couple of cutting situations, which the likes of James, JR, Jeff Green and Korver should be able to capitalize on.
Rodney Hood will probably have a larger role to play in this series, as he matches up well against DeRozan and will look to be on the uptake on the offensive end.
The Cavaliers are not particularly good at defending the post-up play, however, and do not have the defensive wherewithal to deal with Valanciunas - the Lithuanian could end up doing real damage inside the paint during the series against Love and Tristan Thompson.
They've also played a much slower brand of basketball during the playoffs than the regular season. The Raptors have averaged about 8 possessions more per game than the Cavs, and the Cavs will take some time to adjust to the much higher pace of the Raptors.
X-Factor
Raptors
The Raptors did have to play 6 games against the Wizards in the first round, but it is probable that they might not have had to do so if Steady Freddy had been on the court for some of those games instead of having to don street clothes.
VanVleet finished the regular season with one of the best net ratings for all qualified players. His excellence might not reflect on the stat sheet every night, but VanVleet has been the offensive powerhouse for the Raptors' bench mob. He's also a pesky on-ball defender, as shown by the picture above.
Above all, he's the best 3-point shooter on the Raptors' roster going off regular season percentages. His sweet handles allow him to make plays with real ease, and he's an efficient player with the knack of making the right basketball play at the right time. If he plays to his ability, the Raptors should have no problem dispatching the Cavaliers for the first time in 3 years.
Cavaliers
Without mincing any words here, Tristan Thompson has been the definition of a wild card for the Cavaliers in their first-round series. After scoring 3 points in 24 minutes during the first 6 games of the series, he was named to the starting lineup by Tyronn Lue for game 7.
He repaid the extraordinary faith displayed by his head coach by notching up a double-double with 5 offensive rebounds, giving LeBron exactly the kind of support he needed to make his monster night count for a win.
At his best, Tristan Thompson is a force to reckon with as a rim-runner of the Clint Capela/DeAndre Jordan variety. He is also a defensive ace in that mode, and his block on Darren Collison late in game 7 was a demonstration of that fact.
Prediction
The Raptors and the Cavaliers have both got questions to resolve. But all the statistics point almost exclusively to just one factor - the Raptors are just a better basketball team all-in-all. The fact that they also have home court advantage in the event of a Game 7 at the Air Canada Center - a place where they have a 34-7 record during the regular season - should count decisively in their favor.
Even Michael Jordan did have a couple of playoff losses, and they were all to teams significantly better than his own Bulls. LeBron is faced with a similar situation here. There is not much the Raptors can do to stop him from averaging 35/10/7 like he did against the Pacers, but while playing a team as multi-faceted as Toronto, the efforts of one player do not generally count for much in the overall scheme of things.
The Raptors should prevail in this series within 6 games. They will probably win both their initial home games and take a win from the Quicken Loans Arena home for game 5, where they will possibly lose to a superhuman effort by King James. But they will close it out in game 6, advancing to their second Conference Finals series in 3 years.
Guess the Lakers players!
