OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA – MAY 08: Kevin Durant #35 of the Golden State Warriors reacts during their game against the Houston Rockets in Game Five of the Western Conference Semifinals of the 2019 NBA Playoffs at ORACLE Arena on May 08, 2019 in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading
Toronto Raptors
The Warriors had Klay Thompson and Kevon Looney back in the lineup but the Raptors didn’t miss a beat. Toronto’s 13-point Game 4 win pushes Golden State to the brink of elimination. The Raptors won Game 3, the game they were supposed to win. They were on the road but the Warriors were without Kevon
With the NBA Draft now only two weeks away — as is always the case — it is prime time for pundits, fans and even front offices to over-index the value of high draft picks. But one misnomer that’s subconsciously reiterated year-after-year is that the majority of value in the draft often comes in the
The Warriors were missing several key contributors in Game 3 of the NBA Finals and it showed, as the Raptors ran away with a double-digit win. Alfonzo McKinnie played 53 minutes during the 2017-18 NBA season. He played 19 in Game 3 of the 2019 NBA Finals. With Klay Thompson, Kevon Looney and Kevin Durant
About two minutes into Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Toronto’s Kawhi Leonard took a handoff from Pascal Siakam, briefly lost control of his dribble after a Marc Gasol pick, then collected himself. Jordan Bell was right on him. Leonard pulled up from 3. Swish. A few minutes later, Golden State’s Steph Curry missed a
The Warriors survived a new crop of injuries to beat the Raptors in Game 2 and even the NBA Finals at 1-1. The Warriors are a different, albeit equally dangerous, team without Kevin Durant in the lineup. In Game 2, they saw Stephen Curry head to the locker room early in the first half because
Drake won the troll game after Game 1 of the 2019 NBA Finals, but Kevin Durant clapped back with some heat of his own after Game 2. The rapper named Drake got his troll on during Game 1 of the 2019 NBA Finals in many different moments. That worked out pretty well for him because
The 2019 NBA Draft is rapidly approaching. It is now a mere 19 days away and, as is often the case, a lot is left to be sorted out in the final three weeks. While all teams must make a final decision on each of their picks in the draft, there are a few decisions
The Toronto Raptors came out and established that they can more than hang with the Golden State Warriors, picking up a Game 1 win. Here’s how Twitter reacted. Before Game 1 of the NBA Finals even tipped off, there were some who thought that the Toronto Raptors would be a mere speed bump to the
The ratings for Game 1 of the 2019 NBA Finals were notably low, but there’s a pretty big catch. The Toronto Raptors beat the Golden State Warriors 118-109 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals Thursday night, which creates hope for an extended series and more games for ABC and ESPN to air and frame
In the first NBA Finals game in franchise history, the Raptors took a 1-0 lead over Golden State behind a career game from Pascal Siakam. The Raptors won both of their regular-season meetings with the Warriors — one in a thrilling overtime finish and one in a blowout — but the results proved no more
Ahead of a summer where many of the NBA’s top superstars are entering free agency, the 2019 NBA Finals will refreshingly feature the two best players in the NBA, both of whom have been more honest than any of their counterparts about what they want out of basketball. When Kevin Durant joined the Warriors, we
It’s funny how life works, isn’t it? For the first month of the playoffs, including two full series and half of the games played in the Eastern Conference Finals, Toronto Raptors guard Fred VanVleet was mired in one of the worst shooting slumps in his NBA career. Aside from the postseason opening loss to the
The NBA Finals start tomorrow. Let’s dig in on the major questions that will define the series and decide which of the Golden State Warriors and Toronto Raptors will be crowned champions. Will Kevin Durant return during this series? If so, when? And in what condition will his game and body be? In some ways,
By now, everyone knows of the Toronto Raptors, but a superfan dug into the archives of the Toronto Star and explained how the “Raptors” got their name. For the past 24 years, we’ve known Toronto’s NBA basketball team as the “Raptors.” Yes, it is a name that really doesn’t fit the area, but we’ve gotten
For the first time in five years, we get a new NBA Finals matchup. Here’s how the Raptors and Warriors each work to create open 3-pointers. For the first time in NBA history, the NBA Finals will begin outside of the United States with Game 1 on Thursday night, as the Toronto Raptors host the
The Toronto Raptors never stopped fighting, closing out the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 6 to head to the first finals in franchise history. Toronto never gave up. Even after falling behind 0-2 in the series and in a 15-point hole in Game 6. The Bucks came into Toronto on Saturday reeling off its first three-game
We already know the Golden State Warriors will be the Western Conference representative in the NBA Finals. In the East, though, the right to advance is still up for grabs. With Milwaukee and Toronto having won two games apiece, turning this into a best-of-three set over the weekend, now is as good a time as
TORONTO, CANADA – MAY 21: Rapper, Drake, reacts during a game between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Toronto Raptors during Game Four of the Eastern Conference Finals on May 21, 2019 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph,
After the most convincing win and significant momentum shift of the Conference Finals, the Toronto Raptors look the part of an NBA Finalist. When the Raptors fell behind 2-0 in the Eastern Conference Finals, all evidence from the regular season looked to have been confirmed. The Bucks were the best team in the NBA all
With the Toronto Raptors scoring a massive 18-point victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night in Toronto, the Eastern Conference Finals are now tied up at two games apiece. For a matchup between the two top seeds in the Eastern Conference, a tight series isn’t necessarily a surprise, but perhaps a little unexpected is
The Raptors put forth their best effort of the series in Game 4, keeping the Bucks off rhythm and evening up their series 2-2. The Raptors needed overtime to beat the Bucks in Game 3, potentially exhausting what already appeared to be a fragile and shallow rotation struggling to match up with Milwaukee’s depth and
It took 58 minutes of game time, but the Toronto Raptors have their first win of the Eastern Conference Finals, squeaking past the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 3. More than once, it seemed like the Raptors would let Game 3 slip away. After managing just 38 points in the second half, their lead was whittled
MILWAUKEE, WI – MAY 17: Eric Bledsoe #6 of the Milwaukee Bucks looks on at halftime of Game Two of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Toronto Raptors on May 17, 2019 at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user
Brook Lopez had his best game of the postseason, helping power the Bucks to a fiery Game 1 win over the Raptors. This week, Giannis Antetokounmpo talked about the sting of losing Game 1 in the second round to the Celtics and how they could not afford to dig themselves a similar hole against the
There is no prelude necessary as we get ready for the Eastern Conference Finals between the Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors. Today we’re walking through seven questions that will define the series and determine who gets to face the winner of the Golden State-Portland matchup for the Larry O’Brien Trophy. Do the Bucks go back
Golden State won game one of the Western Conference finals against Portland by 22. Yet in a sense, the Blazers being here is already a victory. For five years, Golden State’s shadow has stretched across the league, dimming a number of teams’ willingness to compete. Once Kevin Durant came aboard, conventional wisdom held it was
The Drake curse is real, and it is alive and well. But the famed Toronto rapper is figuring out how to use it to his advantage, and he proved it Sunday night. It’s widely known that if Drake backs a team for a big game, they’re toast. It’s been proven on many occasions before. Well,
You all crowned me your king. I never wanted it. I never asked for it. But I accepted it because the North is my home! It’s part of me, and I will never stop fighting for it, no matter the odds! Being King of the North is a hard job. For one, the North is
With the series tied at 2-2, the Raptors had an opportunity at home to build momentum. They didn’t disappoint, steamrolling the 76ers in a blowout. Less than a week ago, the Philadelphia 76ers had a 2-1 edge in the series, an idea that seems unfathomable after Tuesday’s lopsided loss. But what had worked well for