Toronto Raptors, Welcome to the Show.

After that game winning shot in Game 7 on Sunday night, I think we all need to take a second to breathe. The Toronto Raptors are not joking around, and they proved that Sunday by qualifying for the Eastern Finals for the first time in franchise history.

2018-2019 Season

The Toronto Raptors have had one heck of a season. With the addition of Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green in the preseason, and the late addition of Marc Gasol in trade for Jonas Valunciunas and Delon Wright, the Toronto Raptors you used to know have ceased to exist.

Instead, a new version of the Raptors have emerged, and they’re here to prove that they’re in it to win it.

The Raptors ended their regular season 58-24, finishing second in the Eastern Conference behind the Milwaukee Bucks. They started their post season against the Orlando Magic, winning the series in just five games.

After an extensive back and forth, they defeated the Philadelphia Sixers with a last minute basket by Kawhi Leonard (highly recommend watching the video) in seven games. The Raptors will now go on to play the Eastern Conference leader, Milwaukee Bucks, for a chance to play in the NBA Finals.

If the Raptors succeed, it will be the first time the Toronto Raptors, or any Canadian team, has ever played in the NBA finals.

The Klaw

Kawhi Leonard has undoubtedly been the rising star of the 2019 playoffs for the Toronto Raptors. In game 2 against Orlando, Kawhi scored 37 points, beating his previous high of 35 points in a postseason game.

He then scored 45 points in game 1 against Philadelphia, setting a new high for himself. So far this postseason, Leonard has averaged 31.8 pts, which is five points higher than his regular season average.

Spicy P

Another player who has emerged from the shadows has been Pascal Siakam, commonly known as Spicy P.

He has had an incredible year, averaging 16 points and six rebounds in the regular season, which is almost double his stats from last year. In the postseason he is currently averaging 20.7 points per game and seven rebounds, and has proven to be a real force to be reckoned with on the Toronto Raptors.

Other notable stars this postseason have been Kyle Lowry and Marc Gasol, whose defensive games have been a major contributor to the team’s success thus far.

The Raptors continue their postseason journey this Wednesday on May 15th, where they’ll face the Greek Freak Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks.

Considering the Raptors only won one of their four games against the Bucks this past season, they have their work cut out for them. But if the Klaw can keep making game changing buckets like he has, and defense remains strong, Toronto may actually have a chance.