7. Toronto Raptors
The defending NBA champs may no longer be title contenders, but they’re not going to be a pushover either.
With the defense, experience, and leadership of guys like Kyle Lowry, Marc Gasol, and Serge Ibaka along with the expected improvement from Siakam, and you have a recipe for a team that nobody is going to want to face in the first round of the playoffs!
Yeah, they may have lost Kawhi, but in games that Leonard missed a year ago, the Raps went 17-5. I know that some of the older guys may start slowing down a bit but with the expected leap from Siakam to legit star status, Toronto should definitely still be in the postseason.
8. Detroit Pistons
There are three or four teams that I think will be competing for the eighth seed but I think it is the Pistons’ spot to lose for a few reasons.
They have arguably, a top-5 player in the eastern conference in Blake Griffin who – if he can remain healthy – will be looking to build upon his most complete season to date which he had a year ago.
They also have Andre Drummond to round out one of the more frightening frontcourts in all of basketball.
Derrick Rose was a fantastic pickup and although Reggie Jackson may start over him, he may prove to be the much needed second scorer/shot creator behind Blake Griffin.
And finally, this may be the year that one of their other guys has a breakout. The most obvious candidate here is Luke Kennard but Bruce Brown is another guy who could become a valuable contributor on both ends in an expanded role.
Also, out of the teams that will likely be fighting for the final playoff spots, Detroit has the most experienced roster by a pretty significant margin which may not be the be all end all but it is something worth considering.