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Toronto Raptors: Atlantic Window Is Slowly Slipping

By Joshua Howe

Apr 14, 2015; Boston, MA, USA; Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) drives the ball against Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart (36) in the first half at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 14, 2015; Boston, MA, USA; Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) drives the ball against Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart (36) in the first half at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Toronto Raptors are still the best team in the Atlantic Division. They won it this past season with a record of 49-33, while the Boston Celtics had the next best record at 40-42.

But while the Raps are treading water and trying to figure out what comes next this summer after an extremely disappointing end to 2014-15, the other squads in the Atlantic are just getting better.

Boston’s got the 16th pick in the draft, and they still have head coach Brad Stevens at the helm. Their young roster is full of talent and Marcus Smart might turn out to be a better product than some thought if he adds a reliable shooting touch. They’ll be better next season.

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Philadelphia, otherwise known as Tank Nation, might finally be getting ready to shed that nickname. The Sixers got another high pick in a pretty deep draft and will add to their young core that will really only start playing together this next season, if Hinkie allows it.

The Brooklyn Nets have it tough, but they have a chance to get better via trades, and they’ve been looking to do so since late 2014. It wouldn’t be surprising to hear in the middle of the summer that they’ve traded away Deron Williams or Joe Johnson. If they can manage to start a bit of a rebuild around Brook Lopez, they could look better next season too.

The only team in the division whose outlook is still bleak is the New York Knicks’. Hopefully, Carmelo Anthony’s recovery will go well and he’ll return to peak form next season. Other than that, their roster really is full of “fill-in” players. Still, they’ve got the fourth pick in the upcoming draft (which is pretty good so quit griping, Knicks fans!) and will be able to acquire a nice young talent that might be able to help Melo with the scoring load.

The Atlantic Division is starting to get better, and it’s going to keep getting better as things move forward and seasons pass. The Raptors were lucky and got better all at once two seasons ago. Since that time, they’ve been treading water in a terrible Eastern Conference; they haven’t been able to make any sort of big splash.

They don’t have a high draft pick with the 20th spot, but there is always a chance they could trade up. More likely, general manager Masai Ujiri will simply making trades in the summer to try and bolster the roster.

He could make some major shifts and return to full-out rebuild mode, but that’s not what fans or the team wants. Toronto has been in rebuild mode for too long. But floating in NBA limbo isn’t exactly a great place to be either, especially with the Atlantic so ripe for the picking.

This is the time for Toronto to make their move and get significantly better now and for the future. Ujiri needs to do all he can to try and acquire a star. Yes the Atlantic is bad, but it will only continue to get better whether the Raptors decide to join in or not.

If they aren’t careful, the rest of the division could pass them by completely.

It’s time to capitalize. The window isn’t as big as fans would like to think it is. Toronto has owned the division title for two straight seasons, but if they stay in the same place, those may be the last two banners they’ll have for the foreseeable future.

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