Where the Raptors fit in the loaded Eastern Conference as the season approaches

It’s not easy to predict how the Toronto Raptors fit into a stacked Eastern Conference as we await the season’s tipoff this week.

On paper they should be formidable. In Kawhi Leonard and Scottie Barnes the Raptors boast a 1-2 punch few teams in the East can match. Leonard finished fifth in the NBA in value over replacement player in 2025-26, Barnes tied for 9th. Leonard was seventh in offensive win shares, Barnes third in defensive win shares. Each are imposing, physical difference makers at both ends of the floor and Leonard is as proven as it gets in the playoffs, with two NBA Finals MVP awards, while Barnes was one of the premier performers in last year’s post-season, taking his game to a new level.

The questions start beyond the dynamic duo though. Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett and Jakob Poeltl can each be above average starters when at their best, but they’ve all been hurt far too often in recent years and each have their faults. Another question is how good the bench is. Sophomore Collin Murray-Boyles is the best prospect the franchise has had in years, a sure-fire excellent two-way player for years to come and Ja’Kobe Walter is emerging as well, with Jamal Shead providing steady minutes at backup point guard.

But they’ve lost Sandro Mamukelashvili, one of last year’s best reserves and a key floor-spacer for the club and rookie Allen Graves will take some time to become a contributor.

If all goes well, this can be a Top 3 team in the East, but there’s so much competition that simply avoiding the play-in tournament could be a challenge if a key player or two misses too much time.

Here’s a look at the rest of the conference ahead of Tuesday’s league tipoff (Toronto hosts Chicago in its opener on Wednesday).

The top dogs

New York Knicks

Few expected the Knicks to win the title, ending a drought that went back many decades, but they deserve respect for getting it done and for returning nearly the same roster. Mitchell Robinson is gone and there are some hurt feelings about the tabling of contract extension talks, but this is still a strong overall collection with great chemistry and well-defined roles with a good coach in Mike Brown overseeing everything.

Toronto hasn’t beaten New York since January 2023, 13 straight losses. That’s going to change and our best guess is the Knicks take a bit of a step back and Toronto actually wins more games than them.

Philadelphia 76ers

Remember when the Houston Rockets added Scottie Pippen and Charles Barkley to Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler in the late 1990s? That didn’t work out and was perhaps the weirdest chemistry experiment since the Sixers managed to lure LeBron James and rip off rival Boston to get former Finals MVP Jaylen Brown to join up with Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and V.J. Edgecombe. Unlike those Rockets though, this group still has plenty of emerging youth to go with its wildcard greybeards. It’s a lot of mouths to feed and the load management needed will make head coach Nick Nurse think the Leonard year in Toronto was a walk in the park, but the sheer talent on hand is insane.

Our prediction: It actually comes together pretty well in Year 1, with a Sixers ceiling of making the conference final.

The potential standouts

This is where we’d place Toronto. The aforementioned question marks, but there’s a world where they challenge for first.

Boston Celtics

Brown had to go because he apparently could no longer co-exist with Jayson Tatum, but nobody likes the return they got for him or that they dealt Brown in conference. Still, Tatum is healthy again and still one of the East’s (and NBA’s) best players. They will rebound as well as anyone, defend aggressively and boast solid depth. Still, Paul George has only played more than 56 games once over the last seven seasons and if that doesn’t change, they just don’t have enough overall star talent to really hang with the rest of the East’s best.

Cleveland Cavaliers

Barely got by the Raptors, then took out the Pistons in seven before getting swept by the Knicks. Instead of making a big change, they grabbed solid role player Peyton Watson from the cheap Denver Nuggets and will hope James Harden and Donovan Mitchell can rise to the occasion this time around.

Seems unlikely, though they’ll win around 50 games before collapsing in the first or second round.

Miami Heat

They made the biggest splash in trading for all-time great Giannis Antetkounmpo, but sacrificed much of their depth to do it. Is there enough offence here? We know they’ll rank near the top defensively and Giannis was a one-man wrecking crew in the post-season, but he’s been injured often in recent years and will need to prove there’s still a lot left in the tank.

This will not be an easy team to beat in the playoffs, but they need to get there first.

Indiana Pacers

The conference’s biggest question marks. Two seasons ago they were a win away from winning it all, a run that included taking out the Knicks and others thanks largely to stunning work from Tyrese Haliburton and former Raptors star Pascal Siakam. Haliburton is back after missing the entire season, they’ve added excellent centre Ivica Zubac and Canadian Andrew Nembhard keeps getting better, but they’ll need to catch lightning in a bottle again to go on another run.

Detroit Pistons

The conference leaders aren’t expected to be in that position again. After an epic playoff collapse and an ugly contract battle with all-star centre Jalen Duren the vibes aren’t good entering the year. The Pistons also lost some nice pieces and shooting. We could see them dropping as far as the play-in.

The middle of the pack

Atlanta Hawks

A monster second half pushed the Hawks to a tie in the standings with the Raptors. Lots of things came together after Trae Young was dealt, and Canadian GM Onsi Saleh has been making strong moves, but there’s still something missing.

Washington Wizards

They are hoping Young and Anthony Davis can stay on the court and help the many talented youngsters, including top pick A.J. Dybantsa, finally push them back into the playoff picture. We haven’t seen this strategy used too often in recent years and it probably won’t work, but given what a tire fire the Wizards have been for the last decade, it’s worth a try. And if Young and/or Davis flame out, there’s plenty of young talent still on hand for their fans to get excited about.

Orlando Magic

Every year the Magic get overhyped and disappoint. Will things be different under a new coach but with no roster changes of significance? Only if Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero can stay healthy and if Banchero can start taking better shots. This is a good collection of players with solid depth, but it’s possible Banchero is more sizzle than steak and they should just let Wagner lead the way.

See you in the lottery

Chicago finally has a couple of tantalizing prospects for the first time in seemingly decades in Caleb Wilson and Matas Buzelis, but should be pretty bad this season.

Milwaukee post-Giannis projects to be awful. Brooklyn has a couple of intriguing pieces, but is pretty lost right now.

Charlotte was one of the best stories of 2025-26 but star sophomore Kon Knueppel and fellow starting guard Coby White start on the sidelines with no timetables for returns and franchise player LaMelo Ball was traded to Minnesota. The Hornets had a great draft, but will be heading back to the lottery.

@WolstatSun

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