On Sunday, the Toronto Raptors clinched a spot in the NBA Play-In Tournament with a comfortable 128-108 win over the Charlotte Hornets.
The win put them in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, and since they have the same 39–39 record as the eighth-place Atlanta Hawks, they have a chance to move up in the standings in the coming days.
This would give Toronto a chance to make the playoffs for the ninth time in the last 10 seasons.
Fans on Twitter were ecstatic, wishing the team a move up to a higher seed.
The Raptors are sure to make the playoffs, no team wants them in the playoffs.. possibly one of the best 7/8 seed team ever!! His record doesn’t do justice to his potential
– Web TV (@webtvstreaming_) April 3, 2023
They went to take the 8th seed..!!
— T_Lipp (@Tony_Lippett14) April 3, 2023
However, these fans don’t think the Raptors will go anywhere if they win the play-in tournament.
Bouncing in Round 1 🔥
— Goat (@GoatGooat) April 3, 2023
and first round exit
— ً (@_nuh_uh) April 3, 2023
One might think that since the Raptors only have a .500 record, they are not a good team.
However, don’t let that record fool you.
He has a good amount of talent for a team whose record is average, not to mention a lot of length.
Their best player is 6-foot-9 Pascal Siakam, who came into Sunday averaging a career-high 24.1 points per game, and earned his second All-Star nod this season.
Point guard Fred VanVleet has continued to put up strong numbers this year with 19.7 points and 7.0 assists per game, while two-way wing Ozzie Enunobi has had another strong season.
The Raptors also have high hopes for second-year forward Scottie Barnes, who averaged 15.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4.9 assists coming into the game against the Hornets.
They probably won’t stand a chance against the Milwaukee Bucks or the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs, but they could work the contenders away from them.
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