For the Toronto Raptors, the season ended in a familiar way. Unfortunately, that familiar way is losing to LeBron and the Cavaliers. Yesterday, Toronto lost a playoff series to the Cavaliers for the third straight season, and for the second straight season, the Raptors were swept by Cleveland in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Now, Toronto has a lot of questions to answer as they go into the offseason. Are the tandem of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan good enough? Is Dwane Casey the right man for the job?
Let’s start with Casey. I think Casey is the right man for the job. This team has improved under Casey. They won a franchise best 59 games this season. You’re not going to find many coaches as good as Casey. He’s not the problem.
Regarding the Lowry and DeRozan, maybe it is time to think about trading one of these guys. If LeBron stays in Cleveland, they will continue to be tough to beat. Plus, Philly and Boston are coming. Lowry and DeRozan have proven that they are very good players, but they have proven that they are not good enough to win a title.
The Raptors have close to a $100 million tied up in Lowry, DeRozan, Serge Ibaka, and Jonas Valanciunas next season, so unless they want can find a trade partner, they are pretty much stuck was their current roster.
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith thinks it might be time to make some changes in Toronto. Here is what he had to say on First Take on Tuesday:
.@stephenasmith thinks it's time to "blow up" the Raptors' team. pic.twitter.com/C688Q8DvrM
— First Take (@FirstTake) May 8, 2018
In the 90s, Hall of Famers Charles Barkley and Patrick Ewing were great players, but they ran into Michael Jordan. Sadly, for the Raptors, they keep running into “King James.”