Toronto Raptors: 5 takeaways from 2017-18 NBA season

The Toronto Raptors flamed out in the postseason, but only after the franchise’s best season ever. What are the takeaways from the 2017-18 NBA season?

The Toronto Raptors had the best regular season in franchise history, winning 59 games and finishing well ahead of any other team in the Eastern Conference. Any playoff opponent other than the Houston Rockets — including the defending champion Golden State Warriors — would’ve had to start the series in Toronto.

Then the 2018 NBA Playoffs happened, and in the second round LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers again steamrolled Toronto, ending the series in a four-game sweep. After such a successful season, the end result was again the same.

The shockwaves moving forward could be significant. Will Dwane Casey be retained as head coach? Will the backcourt be broken up? Could ownership decide to call time-of-death on this run of contention and blow things up?

Those are questions for the future. To best make those decisions, the team must properly understand the season that was. What are the top five takeaways from the 2017-18 NBA season? Which is most meaningful moving forward?