Toronto Raptors Win Ninth Straight

Which team is the hottest in the NBA the last couple of weeks? The obvious choice is the Golden State Warriors, but the correct answer is actually the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors beat the visiting Washington Wizards 106-89 on January 26th for a franchise record ninth straight victory. Toronto improved its record to 30-15. The Raptors lead the NBA’s Atlantic Division, and have the second best record in the Eastern Conference behind the Cleveland Cavaliers (31-12).

Point guard Kyle Lowry led Toronto with 29 points. Lowry injured his wrist with about four minutes left in the game and left the floor. X-rays were negative and Lowry said the wrist was “fine”. That’s good news for the Raptors; Lowry is the second leading scorer on the team averaging 20.9 points per game. His backcourt teammate DeMar DeRozan leads the team in scoring with an average of 23 points per game.

Toronto has won the Atlantic Division the last two seasons, but lost in the first round of the playoffs both times. In fact, the Raptors have won division titles three times in their history (they came into the league in 1995) but have lost in the first round of the playoffs each time (the other season was 2006-7). The Raptors have won just one of eight post season series during their existence. Maybe this is the year that changes. The team is well on its way to setting a franchise record for victories (set last season when the Raptors were 49-33) and the team has the depth to make a strong playoff run . They next face the New York Knicks on January 28th in Toronto.