How the Raptors’ Season Grades Out After Game 7 Elimination Against Cavaliers

One of the NBA’s most tightly-contested first-round series came to an end on Sunday night, as the Cavaliers scored a statement Game 7 victory over the Raptors, 114–102.

Home court advantage proved to be everything in the series. The home team won all seven games, most of which were quite competitive, though Cleveland left nothing to chance in the second half against Toronto. The game brings to a close a promising season for a growing Raptors franchise, which has just one main rotation player in his 30s (center Jakob Poeltl, who is exactly 30). The team’s top nine players in minutes per game had an average age of under 25.

This was not a great team in 2025–26, but a very solid one that appears to be heading in the right direction, on solid footing entering the offseason. After a tough season-ending loss to the Cavaliers, here is how Sports Illustrated grades the regular season and playoff runs for Toronto.

Raptors’ regular season grade: B

Toronto Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic reacts against the Cleveland Cavaliers. — Darko Rajaković’s Raptors took a sizable leap forward in 2025–26 after two seasons in which they missed the postseason. | Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

It wasn’t a flashy season, but coming off of a 30–52 campaign and an 11th-place finish in the East a year ago, the Raptors were one of the NBA’s most improved teams in 2025–26.

In his third season leading the franchise, coach Darko Rajaković has brought upon a 21-win improvement from 2023–24 to ‘25–26, and he’s done it by building one of the NBA’s most impressive defenses. The rangy group led by forward Scottie Barnes was fifth in the NBA with a defensive rating of 112.1. They only trailed the Thunder, Pistons, Spurs and Celtics—the top two seeds in each conference this year.

Toronto’s offense remains a work in progress. Brandon Ingram, acquired last season at the trade deadline but quickly shut down due to injury, provided some much-needed firepower this season, leading the team with 21.5 points per game, picking up an All-Star nod along the way. Barnes, Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett and a number of other role players gave the Raptors a host of offensive threats, though none proved to be the kind of reliable go-to player that could get Toronto out of an offensive rut during the season. Toronto was middle of the pack offensively, finishing with a team offensive rating of 115.0, good for 15th in the league.

The 2025 NBA draft proved to be a big win for the franchise, a fact that should serve it well moving forward. First-round pick Ja'Kobe Walter and second-rounder Jamal Shead both developed into solid rotation players for the Raptors by season’s end, and could prove to be franchise cornerstones alongside Barnes for years to come.

Raptors’ postseason grade: C+

Toronto Raptors forward Brandon Ingram shoots the ball against the Cleveland Cavaliers. — Brandon Ingram struggled early against the Cavaliers and missed the end of the series due to injury, limiting the Raptors’ scoring punch. | Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

You can’t get a good grade for a first-round exit, but the Raptors surprised by taking the Cavaliers to the brink of elimination in the opening series. Toronto didn’t lose at home in the first round, but couldn’t steal one in Cleveland as the home team won each game of the series. Barrett gave Raptors fans a moment to remember with his heroics in Game 6 on a clutch game-winning three that hit the back heel of the rim and bounced all the way up to the top of the shot clock before it fell down through the net.

The shot felt a lot like Kawhi Leonard’s memorable shot that sent home the 76ers in 2019 during the Raptors’ title season. Barrett, a Toronto native, kept his team’s season alive for one more game in a fashion that will be remembered no matter the final outcome. Although Toronto found an early lead in Game 7, Cleveland took control with a 38–19 third quarter that all but ended the Raptors’ season.

After a strong start to the regular season, the Raptors narrowly avoided the play-in tournament as the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference thanks to a shocking loss by the Magic to the Celtics’ team of reserves on the final day of the regular season. That was a win for Toronto and it put up a better fight than most thought against the Cavs with a strong series out of Barnes, Barrett and rookie Collin Murray-Boyles. Brandon Ingram was a non-factor in the series and could have potentially swung it in the Raptors’ favor, but he missed Games 6 and 7 due to right heel inflammation.

More NBA From Sports Illustrated

Listen to SI’s NBA podcast, Open Floor, below or on Apple and Spotify. Watch the show on SI’s YouTube channel.

Add us as a preferred source on Google