Toronto Raptors

Toronto Raptors

The Raptors go from a big team to a small team faster than maybe any other team in the NBA. When they start Jakob Poeltl they're huge. When Poeltl exits the lineup (and with Mo Bamba recently released) the Raptors immediately shrink to a squad without a single player taller than 6-foot-9. Even the Hornets, without their gargantuan rookie Ryan Kalkbrenner, can pivot to Moussa Diabate if they so choose.

Josh Cornelissen of Raptors Rapture just pointed out that the Raptors are now free to trade their 30-year-old veteran center, Jakob Poeltl, after signing him to an extension this past summer. The deal keeps him on the team's salary sheet for another four years and is worth $104 million - but that decision could quickly turn into an all-time franchise mistake if Poeltl's injury concerns don't improve.

Peas are as polarizing as they are populous, with people's opinions on the vegetable often boiling down to one thing: perspective. My wife, for instance, loathes the voluminous green bulbs because of the taste and texture, which "feels like pimples popping in your mouth," and the fact that she hardly ate them growing up, as her mom didn't like them either.

We're back for the second week of the brand new series of Top Ten Raptors Plays of the Week. Let's get into it, as this week's games covered five matchups that went from the Trail Blazers game last Tuesday to obviously last night's showdown against the New York Knicks.

Jakob Poeltl and RJ Barrett have been stellar in their roles to start the year. Both have been efficient and a critical part of the team's early-season success. Poeltlis shooting a mind-boggling 73.3% from the field and helps initiate the offense with rock-solid screens. Barretthas continued to thrive as a crucial offensive option in the team pecking order, putting up almost 20 points (19.4) per game on quality efficiency.

Second seed in the Eastern Conference and atop their Atlantic Division, the Toronto Raptors have been absolutely bulldozing through their opposition as of late, boasting a superb 9-1 record in their last 10 contests. The Raps have a win percentage of 66.7 percent, beating their opponents by an average point differential of +5.0, riding an ongoing five-game winning streak, and a 10-5 record overall in the East landscape.

At the time of writing, the Toronto Raptors are tied for fifth in the NBA in team field goal percentageat 49.8 percent, sharing the spot with the San Antonio Spurs. Ahead of them are the only four NBA teams surpassing the 50 percent mark: the Minnesota Timberwolves in fourth, the Milwaukee Bucks in third, the Los Angeles Lakers in second, and the Denver Nuggets leading the league with a 50.6 field goal shooting percentage.