The Toronto Raptors have one of the toughest schedules in the NBA to begin their 2024-25 season.
The Raptors will start the season by playing the Cleveland Cavaliers, Philadelphia 76ers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Denver Nuggets.
Then the Raptors play the Charlotte Hornets, who could be significantly better this season. After that, the Raptors host the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings before heading on a 4-game West Coast trip. The Raptors will see the Nuggets and Kings again, followed by the Los Angeles Clippers and Lakers before going to Milwaukee to play the Bucks for their 5th straight road game. The Raptors will then return home for their first “easy” game of the season against the Detroit Pistons.
“I really want to focus on our team and how we go day-by-day and improve….we’re not thinking Game 2, 3, 4, 7. (The) schedule is (the) schedule. Nobody has control over the schedule”, coach Darko Rajakovic said.
But the reality is the Raptors have a tough first couple of weeks in front of them. The Raptors could come out of the gate flying and surprise a lot of teams with early wins. However, the likely scenario is the Raptors pile up a ton of losses early on. Twenty of the Raptors’ first 25 games are against teams who made the playoffs last season.
“Playing against some really good teams early in the season, I think it can only help us. I think it can help us to understand what it takes to compete and win against all those high-end teams. It can only help us speed up our process,” Rajakovic said.
If the Raptors are able to survive the early season gauntlet, the last part of their schedule will be a lot more favorable. Sixteen of the Raptors’ final 19 games are against teams who failed to make the playoffs last season.
Nonetheless, the Raptors will be put to the test early and they will need to deliver or else the season could get ugly fast.
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