Before the season started, Bryan Colangelo and the Raptors media representatives called for 50 wins this season.
After looking at all the changes Bryan Colangelo had made to the roster and comparing them to the 2006-07 Colangelo remake of the team, brothersteve’s blog put out our own 47 win prediction.
And based on how the Raptors started and then came together as the season progressed, the parallels to that amazing 2006-07 run are still there.
But what will it take to match the Raptors best ever season win total again this year?
The team, the media, and the fans have been waiting for the big soft section in the Raptors schedule to start. And except for Sunday’s game against the Lakers, the Raptors opportunity to salvage a great season starts tonight at home against Milwaukee.
These next twelve games will define the Raptors 2009-10 season:
- Nine home games with only the Lakers penciled in as a likely loss.
- Miami providing the only other team that should challenge the Raptors on their home court.
- Three winnable road games against New York, Indiana, and New Jersey.
- Two winnable back-to-back series.
If the Raptors can do what needs to be done and win 11 of these next 12 games, a 47 win season remains within grasp and a shot at fifth is possible.
And sure, the Raptors could make up a loss or two by beating a contender later in the season, but failure to win at least eight of these games returns the Raptors to fighting it out for one of the last two playoff spots in the East.
If the Raptors split these next twelve games, Bryan Colangelo may be forced into considering one of those big trades that have been so frequently speculated about.
The rest of the Raptors season looks as follows. The Raptors are good enough to be a 47 win team. Now just go do it!
| Opponent | Win/Loss | Record | |
| January | 21-22 | ||
| Fri 22 | vs Milwaukee | W | 22-22 |
| Sun 24 | vs LA Lakers | L | 22-23 |
| Wed 27 | vs Miami | W | 23-23 |
| Thu 28 | @ New York | W | 24-23 |
| Sun 31 | vs Indiana | W | 25-23 |
| February | |||
| Tue 02 | @ Indiana | W | 26-23 |
| Wed 03 | vs New Jersey | W | 27-23 |
| Sun 07 | vs Sacramento | W | 28-23 |
| Wed 10 | vs Philadelphia | W | 29-23 |
| Wed 17 | vs Memphis | W | 30-23 |
| Fri 19 | @ New Jersey | W | 31-23 |
| Sat 20 | vs Washington | W | 32-23 |
| Wed 24 | vs Portland | L | 32-24 |
| Fri 26 | vs Cleveland | L | 32-25 |
| Sun 28 | @ Oklahoma City | L | 32-26 |
| March | |||
| Mon 01 | @ Houston | W | 33-26 |
| Fri 05 | vs New York | W | 34-26 |
| Sun 07 | vs Philadelphia | W | 35-26 |
| Tue 09 | @ LA Lakers | L | 35-27 |
| Wed 10 | @ Sacramento | L | 35-28 |
| Sat 13 | @ Golden State | W | 36-28 |
| Sun 14 | @ Portland | L | 36-29 |
| Wed 17 | vs Atlanta | L | 36-30 |
| Fri 19 | vs Oklahoma City | W | 37-30 |
| Sat 20 | @ New Jersey | W | 38-30 |
| Mon 22 | @ Minnesota | W | 39-30 |
| Wed 24 | vs Utah | W | 40-30 |
| Fri 26 | vs Denver | W | 41-30 |
| Sun 28 | @ Miami | L | 41-31 |
| Mon 29 | @ Charlotte | L | 41-32 |
| Wed 31 | vs LA Clippers | W | 42-32 |
| April | |||
| Sat 03 | @ Philadelphia | W | 43-32 |
| Sun 04 | vs Golden State | W | 44-32 |
| Tue 06 | @ Cleveland | L | 44-33 |
| Wed 07 | vs Boston | L | 44-34 |
| Fri 09 | @ Atlanta | L | 44-35 |
| Sun 11 | vs Chicago | W | 45-35 |
| Mon 12 | @ Detroit | W | 46-35 |
| Wed 14 | vs New York | W | 47-35 |
brothersteve,
Love the chart!
brothersteve,
At first glance these are the games which I’d circle as “possible” Losses ahead that you’ve already pencilled in as W’s:
Jan 27 vs Mia
Jan 28 @ NYK
Feb 02 @ IND
Feb 07 vs Sac
Feb 10 vs Phi
Feb 17 vs Mem
Feb 20 vs Was
Do I think the Raptors are going to lose each of these 7 games?
No, I do not.
However, I might be persuaded to make a friendly wager that Toronto will not win all 7 of these specific games … despite having more than enough talent on-hand to turn that exact trick.
As I don’t gamble, let alone bet on sports, we’d need to define friendly.
But, I believe I will not be wrong on my picks any more often than you’ve been wrong on yours.
A 10 game winning streak, even though they should win them all, would be quite the trick. But if they come close, they should be able to make it up by winning a couple penciled in as losses.
If they don’t come close, the whole season could unravel.
As of Feb 8, Those predicted wins that you’ve circled as possible losses are 3-1 and the Raptors are 28-23 as predicted.
That’s pretty good isn’t it?