Only just heating up 🔥
— x - Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) April 12, 2022
Gametape | @LGCanada pic.twitter.com/nMvdJ9sRbM
What a difference playing half of your games on Canadian soil in Toronto. The Toronto Raptors had plenty of golf time last season, not making the playoffs. Scottie Barnes turned out to be a really good player, #4 overall and the Raptors top draft selection.
The 2021-2022 version finished 48-34, a far cry from the 27-45 record of a year ago.
Fred Van Vleet and Pascal Siakam took on bigger roles and rose to the collective challenge. Barnes, Gary Trent Jr., and OG Anunoby generally round out the starting lineup.
The Raptors managed to finish as the 5 seed and avoid the ugliness of having to be in the play-in tournament. The Raptors took 3 out of 4 games with Philadelphia this season, going 1-1 at Scotiabank Arena and 2-0 on the road.
| Date | Result | Location |
| November 11, 2021 | Toronto 115, Philadelphia 109 | Philadelphia |
| December 28, 2021 | Philadelphia 114, Toronto 109 | Toronto |
| March 20, 2022 | Toronto 93, Philadelphia 88 | Philadelphia |
| April 7, 2022 | Toronto 119, Philadelphia 114 | Toronto |
The teams met previously in the NBA playoffs both times in the second round and both times in 7 games. The 76ers were victorious in 2001 while the Raptors won out in 2019 on Kawhi Leonard's buzzer beater.
As the lower seed, the Raptors host Games 3-4 and 6. Players have to be fully vaccinated to play in Canada, so those unvaccinated players (e.g., Matisse Thybulle) will miss key playoff games in Toronto.
2022 Toronto Raptors NBA playoffs scoreboard
2021 Toronto Raptors NBA preview
2021 Toronto Raptors NBA preseason schedule
CanadianCrossing.com NBA coverage
Rogers Sportsnet and TSN will split up the Toronto Raptors postseason games in a similar fashion to the regular season. ESPN, TNT, and NBA TV will handle the U.S. television. ABC will carry a few games, not likely to include the Raptors unless Toronto goes deep and the over-the-air network has no choice.
TSN will carry Games 1-2 and 6, if needed. Rogers Sportsnet has the rest of the games in the first round.
The general pattern has been that the NHL playoffs start before the NBA playoffs. Scheduling will have to factor in that the Maple Leafs are still playing regular season games. Philadelphia also has NHL conflicts for its arena.
The 2020 NBA playoffs were buried in silence just outside of Orlando. Toronto was nowhere near the 2021 playoffs. Jurassic Park won't be quite what it was in 2019 and years before. You can find details on the tailgate.
Scottie Barnes is the only rookie this season to end the year ranked TOP 5 in every major stat category! 👏
— NBA Canada (@NBACanada) April 12, 2022
Watch his BEST PLAYS from the '21-'22 regular season! ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/RtOBQquoPR
Toronto Raptors playoffs history
| 2022 | Philadelphia | 0-0 |
| 2020 | Boston | 3-4 |
| 2020 | Brooklyn | 4-0 |
| 2019 | Golden State | 4-2 |
| 2019 | Milwaukee | 4-2 |
| 2019 | Philadelphia | 4-3 |
| 2019 | Orlando | 4-1 |
| 2018 | Cleveland | 0-4 |
| 2018 | Washington | 4-2 |
| 2017 | Cleveland | 0-4 |
| 2017 | Milwaukee | 4-2 |
| 2016 | Cleveland | 2-4 |
| 2016 | Miami | 4-3 |
| 2016 | Indiana | 4-3 |
| 2015 | Washington | 0-4 |
| 2014 | Brooklyn | 3-4 |
| 2008 | Orlando | 1-4 |
| 2007 | New Jersey | 2-4 |
| 2002 | Detroit | 2-3 |
| 2001 | Philadelphia | 3-4 |
| 2001 | New York | 3-2 |
| 2000 | New York | 0-3 |
Twitter captures: @Raptors; @NBACanada
photo credit: @Raptors
Comments