Toronto Raptors: 3 Raptors players who need big final stretch

As the regular season winds down into its final month and a half, the Toronto Raptors need to see a strong finish from the following three players.

Everybody around the NBA seems to believe the Toronto Raptors are playing with house money this season, standing firm in second place of the Eastern Conference despite the departure of Kawhi Leonard. Needless to say, the Raptors aren’t feeling the same way.

The Raptors have positioned themselves as a serious threat to hang on to homecourt advantage for the first two rounds of the NBA playoffs, giving them the inside track towards an Eastern Conference Finals berth, perhaps more. There’s still some time for the Raptors to cough up that second seed, though, as their regular season doesn’t come to an end until April 15 against the Orlando Magic.

One of the key factors over the next several weeks for Toronto will be health. The Raptors have been one of the most snakebitten teams this season in terms of injuries, with virtually no rotational pieces getting out of the training room unscathed. The team will be closely monitoring the team to make sure they’re set to go for the postseason.

But another factor will be how strongly the team finishes the season. Momentum is a polarizing topic, with some believing in its immense power and some disregarding it completely. For what it’s worth, Toronto won seven of their last eight regular season games en route to their first NBA championship last year.

Here are three players who need to have a big final month for Toronto prior to the playoffs.