Raptors Mailbag: Playoff Hopes, Tanking Talk, and Dark Horse Breakout Candidates

The start of the NBA season is officially here and the Toronto Raptors are heading into what looks like another season of development with an eye on the lottery odds

Oct 15, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes (4) celebrates scoring against the Boston Celtics during the first half at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images / Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images

The NBA season has officially arrived.

The Toronto Raptors are now just hours away from opening their season at Scotiabank Arena against the Cleveland Cavaliers. It's the 13th straight season Toronto has opened at home, including the Tampa season. It's a strange statistical anomaly but Raptors fans should certainly be happy about that.

Anyway, here are the latest questions from my mailbag call out on Instagram. As always, if you have a question for a mailbag article feel free to direct message me @aaronbenrose.

Is RJ Barrett OK? - @zachstemer

He'll be OK. It sounds like he's pretty close to getting back on the court. I expect him to return sometime this week or early next week at the latest.

How big of a role will Ja'Kobe Walter play this season? - @tgoncalo7

His injury certainly puts a damper on how his season will start and I expect the Raptors to bring him along slowly when he does return at some point within the first month of the season. I don't think he'll play a huge role to start the year, but if this season goes as I suspect it will, Walter will see plenty of playing time toward the second half of the year. He'll probably start a bunch of games and Toronto will force-feed him opportunities to expedite his development.

Dark horse for a breakout performance? - @moddydadoo

I wouldn't bet on Ochai Agbaji, but if there's one player who could surprise people this season I think it could be him. I was basically ready to move on from him in Summer League, but I could see him becoming an important piece for the Raptors this year. He's among their best wing defenders and if he can contribute offensively, he'll be solid. He was a 35.5% three-point shooter as a rookie and needs to get back to that, but he showed some offensive utility in the preseason. It's either him or Davion Mitchell if you're looking for a dark horse candidate.

If the Raptors made the playoffs would you be happy for the experience for BBQ? - ya.boy.hd

It depends on how it plays out.

If the Raptors are a sub-.500 team that sneaks into the play-in tournament, wins two games miraculously, and then gets swept by the Boston Celtics, it will not have been worth it. I would much prefer to have a top pick in this year's draft. That said, if the Raptors are legitimately feisty, Scottie Barnes looks like a fringe All-NBA player, RJ Barrett is actually an efficient offensive player, and Immanuel Quickley is an above-average starting point guard, playoff experience that's actually meaningful would be helpful. That would likely require Miami or someone falling apart in Memphis Grizzlies fashion and the Raptors sneaking in as a six or seven-seed.

Would you push for the playoffs this year or focus on development for one more year and the draft? - yycraig79

If I were in charge, I'd take one more year of tanking before I'd begin the ascent back to the playoffs. I think the Raptors need multiple blue-chip prospects and the best way to get those types of players is in the draft. Toronto did it once and it landed the organization Barnes and the best bet is to do it again. It's not a foolproof plan, but nothing in the NBA is.

Are we as bad as everyone thinks? I think we have a good team and will be top 20. - @jimmy_yourmortgagemap

To me, it's mostly a matter of how lopsided Toronto's schedule is. If the Raptors inversed their schedule and began the season with all the league's worst teams, I could see Toronto contending for a play-in spot because of all the early-season wins the Raptors would rack up against those bottom dwellers. Opening the season against such tough competition likely means Toronto will lose a ton of games early and tank the final third of the season. My guess is the Raptors artificially finish the season with a worse record than their true talent would suggest.

Can the Raptors make the playoffs this season? - beulahelyss

Can they? Sure. Will they? Probably not. I think the top eight in the East is a pretty clear step above the Raptors and I think Toronto will do its best to get into the top part of the lottery this year. I would be very surprised if the Raptors earned a post-season berth, but crazier things have happened.