Raptors Accomplish Big Goal, But Surprisingly Fall in Power Rankings

The Toronto Raptors are turning the calendar to February, remaining one of the top teams in the league.

Toronto Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic reacts to an official's call in the second half against the Utah Jazz. | Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

The Toronto Raptors are celebrating for the 30th time this season after beating the Utah Jazz 107-100 inside Scotiabank Arena.

The victory means the Raptors have matched their win total from last season, and there is still over 30 games to go on the schedule. Despite this, NBA.com writer John Schuhmann ranked the Raptors at number 12 in his power rankings, one spot lower than the previous week.

"It took them three tries, but the Raptors became the third team to match its win total from last season with an ugly victory over the Jazz on Sunday. That has them holding onto a top-four spot in the East," Schuhmann wrote.

"The Raptors’ win against Utah on Sunday was the start of a five-game homestand that takes them into the All-Star break. The home team has won the last seven meetings between the Raptors and the Wolves, who haven’t played each other in more than 14 months. Their meeting on Wednesday is the first game of a back-to-back for Toronto."

Toronto Raptors forward Brandon Ingram passes the ball to guard Immanuel Quickley. | Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

Raptors Fall in Power Rankings

The only teams ranked ahead of the Raptors are the Los Angeles Clippers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder and Detroit Pistons.

The main reason behind the Raptors' fall in the power rankings are their two losses to the Knicks and Orlando Magic. In both of those games, the Raptors had a lead in the second half, but it squandered due to poor shooting from beyond the arc.

"Before the win on Sunday, the Raptors lost a pair of big games within the top eight of the Eastern Conference, coming up empty offensively against the Knicks and getting clobbered in the fourth quarter in Orlando. They had double-digit, second-half leads in both games and were 26-4 (third best) in games they led by double-digits before Wednesday, but allowed the two opponents to combine for 152 points on 101 second-half possessions," Schuhmann wrote.

"The Raptors also shot just 14-for-54 (25.9%) from 3-point range over the losses to New York and Orlando. This would be the fourth straight season where they ranked in the bottom 10 in both 3-point percentage (34%, 28th) and the percentage of their shots that have come from 3-point range (37.5%, 24th)."

The Raptors are back in action on Wednesday against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET inside Scotiabank Arena. Fans can watch the game on TSN Sports or stream it on NBA League Pass.