The Toronto Raptors and Boston Celtics are playing on the NBA preseason schedule on Wednesday and the game is live at 7:30 pm ET from the Cross Insurance Arena in Portland, Maine as the Atlantic division east rivals play and the Celtics come in after a loss to the Knicks, while the Raptors come in after a win against NY at MSG.
The Celtics come into the season continuing along their rebuilding mode, while the Raptors were looked at as a team that should have been in rebuilding mode. The Raptors defied all expectations last season and ended up winning the Atlantic division and now they are a threat to do it again. The team did not trade Kyle Lowry like everyone expected and now they have him in on a long term deal and he looks ready to help build back the franchise.
The Raptors ended up winning 48 games to set a franchise record and the team traded away Rudy Gay in the middle of the season and many thought that was the start of the breakdown. The team instead got better and deeper with that deal and now Masai Ujiri has the chance to build around Lowry and some other young talent like DeMar DeRozan and Tyler Hansbrough along with Jonas Valanciunas. The team ranked in the top 10 in defense last season and they are looking to get even better at that this year.
The Raptors are now 3-1 on the preseason and they are up against the Boston Celtics who have a 2-2 record. Toronto comes in after a win against the NY Knicks and then after that the team plays against the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Celtics come into the game after a loss against the Knicks and they have the Sixers next after the matchup with the Raptors and they are hoping that players like Marcus Smart and Jared Sullinger can step things up this season.
The Celtics have Rondo dealing with a broken hand and they are hoping that Marcus Smart can come through and play if he has to miss time. The team is hoping to keep Rondo after this season, but he is heading into free agency and a player of his caliber can easily get chased by another team. The Lakers and Knicks will be targeting Rondo, but the Celtics have come out to say that they want to keep him long term. The two sides have time to figure things out, but it's very likely Rondo hits the free agent market.
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