They say basketball is a game of runs, but they don’t really say it’s a season of runs. Yet that’s what the early part of this season has seemed like for the Toronto Raptors. They lost three of their first four games. Then won five straight. And now have lost three straight.
They’ll try to snap that streak tonight against the Philadelphia 76ers, who have lost two in a row after starting 8-2. The 76ers are not whole, and I’m not just talking about the Ben Simmons situation; they’re missing a bevy of players due to the league’s health and safety protocols, including MVP candidate Joel Embiid.