Raptors Power Rankings: Where We Agree and Disagree

The Toronto Raptors are going into the upcoming season with a lot of optimism after making the playoffs for the first time in four years.

The Raptors were the No. five seed in the Eastern Conference and are angling themselves to be even higher in the upcoming season if the Kawhi Leonard trade is finalized before the start of the year. Various experts from around the NBA landscape conducted summer power rankings and placed the Raptors around No. 12, but how they got there is up for debate.

Outlet	Ranking
Bleacher Report	No. 12 in NBA
The Athletic	No. 12 in NBA
ESPN	No. 8 in East

Agree: Raptors Are a Top-12 Team

Toronto Raptors forward RJ Barrett and forward Collin Murray-Boyles block out San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Raptors clocked in at No. 12 in Bleacher Report and The Athletic's power rankings. The consistency of their placement across multiple outlets suggests that this is a pretty popular opinion, and it's one that I would personally agree with.

The Raptors would be a top-eight team if they made it to the second round of the playoffs last season, but they lost in seven games to the Cleveland Cavaliers, who are ranked higher than them in each exercise.

The Raptors have made moves to move closer to the top, but nothing can be confirmed until they start playing the games. Their offseason moves suggest that they are getting better, but it's hard to say that they are better without the results.

Disagree: Raptors Are 'Play-In Bound'

Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes during the first half against the Brooklyn Nets | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

While Bleacher Report and The Athletic were complementary of the Raptors, ESPN has the Raptors as the eighth-best team in the Eastern Conference, predicting a 45-37 record for the upcoming season.

The East is incredibly stacked, with around 10 teams that have a chance at going deep in the playoffs. This group includes the Raptors, who are coming off a 46-win season in 2025-26. The crowded Eastern Conference is exactly why the Raptors need this Leonard trade to go through.

Perhaps the Raptors, or perhaps ESPN, are concerned about how much Leonard is actually going to play for Toronto, if at all. The deal still has to go through within the next couple of weeks before the start of training camp. Even when he arrives with the Raptors, his injury history is a cause for concern.

Leonard played in 65 games last season for the Clippers, but only 37 the year before. In his six years with the Clippers, he only exceeded 60 appearances in a season twice. This means the Raptors will have to play at least a quarter of the season without him, but they have the depth to be prepared for that.

Agree: Raptors Are on 'the Bubble'

Toronto Raptors forward RJ Barrett moves the ball against Los Angeles Clippers guard Kobe Sanders. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

There is still a lot of mystery surrounding the Raptors when it comes to Leonard and where they stand in the Eastern Conference for the upcoming season. There are a lot of different directions the upcoming season can go, and this point in the calendar is all about speculation. If the Raptors were in the West, I would say that they should be a playoff team due to the lack of competition in the West.

However, this is the East and the Raptors won't have it easy.

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