10/2 Utah vs. Toronto
7:00 pm MT – AT&T SportsNet/League Pass
It won’t take long for the stakes and competitiveness to rise significantly after facing Perth given that Utah’s next contest will be against the East’s mighty Toronto Raptors. The Raptors were a force to be reckoned with during the regular season last year as they took home the number one seed in convincing fashion. They’ve kept much of that talented group in place while replacing one All-Star, DeMar DeRozan, with a superstar in Kawhi Leonard.
Hypothetically, that move should make the Raptors really, really good. But they also have a lot of questions to answer. Is Leonard fully recovered from last season’s weird bout with injury? Will he be the same player upon returning? How will he fit chemistry-wise in Toronto on a team and for a fanbase that loved DeRozan? Will his impending free agency and presumed departure be a distraction this season?
It’s likely going to take the better part of 82 games to answer all those questions, but one thing is certain, with Kawhi in their mix, the Raptors are facing some high expectations. Certainly, they have their eyes set on the top seed in the East once again and hopefully a Finals appearance. If Leonard doesn’t skip a beat and is the prolific defensive monster and offensive beast he once was, I truly think they could pull it off.
Kawhi Leonard is a Toronto Raptor pic.twitter.com/t7guVHVjhM
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) September 24, 2018
But in terms of Tuesday’s preseason bout, I’m leaning more towards the Jazz finding a way to thwart the Toronto Raptors. If it were the regular season, I may have a different opinion. And as I mentioned earlier, anything can happen in preseason games so who knows how much the best players for either team will even play.
However, considering that this game will be taking place on Utah’s home court in the first preseason contest against NBA talent, I think the Jazz will have a bit of an edge. Not only that, but with preseason just getting underway, it’s obviously going to take some time for Leonard and the rest of his Raptors teammates to get accustomed to one another whereas the Jazz should largely already be in sync.
Combine those two factors, and I’m expecting the Jazz to come out on top albeit in narrow fashion in what could feel much less like a preseason bout and more like a legitimate contest between two teams eyeing top seeds in their respective conferences.
My Prediction: Jazz Win
Final Score: Utah 103, Toronto 97