Toronto Raptors Gaining Momentum After Three-Game Win Streak: Podcast

The Toronto Raptors achieved a three-game win streak Wednesday night by dominating the Chicago Bulls in a wire-to-wire 139-109 win in the United Center. The first contest of a five-game road trip came after two significant wins against the Phoenix Suns and Detroit Pistons, boosting the team’s momentum after a shameful loss against the New Orleans Pelicans. 

Beating the top-seeded Pistons was monumental for a struggling Raptors team. Their record against the top-10 teams in the NBA now sits at 2-18, outside of the pre-James Harden Cleveland Cavaliers, and more work is to be done with the Denver Nuggets coming up next. 

It seems the Raptors have been revived after the loss to the Pelicans; the defensive intensity has only increased as the games progress, but the offense’s movement has also been better as of late. This can be shown by the seven Raptors who scored in double-digits against Chicago, led by RJ Barrett, who’s playing the best basketball of his career. 

Forward/center Sandro Mamukelashvili described the impact the loss had on their mentality for the rest of the regular season when speaking with TSN Sports’ Kayla Grey. 

“It just woke us up, and sometimes you need that,” said Mamukelashvili. “I feel like we were sitting at that top-five spot for so long. We got way too comfortable. We didn't see all the adversity creeping up on us, and the other teams also creeping up on us. That woke us up. This is going to change how we really approach the rest of the regular season."

Head coach Darko Rajakovic is on record as using different approaches to rally his troops throughout this season. After the Pelicans loss, he remained calm and positive with his team, assuring them that the adversity was exactly what they needed at the moment. It’s true that this team needs to be tested throughout the course of the regular season, especially considering they have missed the playoffs for three straight seasons. 

One of the most underrated qualities that is required of a championship-aspiring team is postseason experience. Nobody in the rotation has seen quality playoff minutes, and so the only experience they can get right now is against the top teams in the highest-pressure moments. Clearly, the Raptors have not been prepared for those moments to this point in the season, given their treacherous record against the league’s best, but this recent swing of momentum may be able to carry them into the postseason. 

Beating the average or worse teams in the league has not been a problem for the Raptors, and that needs to continue if they want to stay in the fifth seed or climb to the fourth. However, they still have nine more games against future playoff teams, and those will hold the most weight in terms of confidence for how the players can compete when their backs are against the wall.