Well folks, it all comes down to this.

Raptors vs Nets for all the marbles.

Or...ping pong balls.

In fact not even ALL the ping pong balls, just a shot at potentially the sixth most, or, although extremely unlikely, a tie for third most with several other NBA clubs.

So essentially this is a must-lose game for Toronto but as we've noted a few times already today, that's not going to be so easy. The Nets are essentially playing rookies and D Leaguers, and while the Raps have their own share of most-known unknowns, on paper they don't quite compare.

Plus the Raps have Dwane Casey leading the charge and you know that the work "tank" just isn't in his vocabulary unless we're talking Army or GI Joe's.

But for the full goods on tonight, and a quick look back on the season that was, we for the final time this year, turn things over courtside to our good buddy Ryan McNeill of Hooplife and Sportsnet, and his special guest tonight, the one and only Ryan Wolstat from the Toronto Sun.

Take it away gents, and Go Nets!

It shouldn't get any easier than this for the Toronto Raptors.

The Milwaukee Bucks are three games back of the Philadelphia 76ers for the eighth and final playoff spot in the East with three games to go. Therefore, Milwaukee needs all three wins.

The Raps need to lose their final two matches in order to give themselves the best shot possible at Anthony Davis.

Bottom line, Bucks need to win, Raps need to lose.

Perfect scenario right?

I'd like to think so, but never say never with this Raptors' team, or this Bucks one for that matter. After all, Milwaukee despite desperately needing W's down the stretch, somehow lost to Washington recently so we'll just have to see how this one plays out.

At the very least though, we'll get some very entertaining names being bandied about...

GO BUCKS!

This is what it's come down to for fans of the Toronto Raptors and Detroit Pistons.

A late April game with potentially big implications, but not of the playoff kind.

Yet again.

Yes, the Raptors and Pistons for what now seems like the fifth year in a row, are fighting it out for NBA draft lottery positioning with the winner of today's match becoming the loser; the loser as in moving slightly ahead of their opponent record-wise and therefore having worse odds at the NBA's number one overall pick in the upcoming draft.

Right now the Raps hold the advantage, but they need an L to make sure they stay close to teams like the Warriors in full tank mode.

The Pistons are coming off a stretch of six games in eight days so the rested Raps on paper should have an advantage. But the Raps may be without Jose Calderon so on the talent test, well, the Pistons get the nod.

I guess we'll just have to see how this one goes...

GO PISTONS!

Another interesting one tonight as on paper, this looks like an easy win for the Miami Heat.

Then you hear that Chris Bosh isn't playing.

And that Dwyane Wade won't go again either.

Oh and just for good measure, newly acquired Ronny Turiaf gets the night off as well.

Then?

Well you gotta pause a bit I guess.

Toronto won't have Jose Calderon so maybe that tilts the scale back in favour of Miami a bit, but again this is no easy W for the Heat. LeBron James could go off, but he's got precious little around him this evening to rely on otherwise. He'll need to get some help from guys like Shane Battier and Norris Cole if he wants this W.

And he should. LeBron's Heat are still within striking distance of the Chicago Bulls for top spot in the East so let's hope Miami isn't rolling over in this one.

GO HEAT!

Five games left in the regular season, the Toronto Raptors haven't sniffed the playoffs in ages.

And yet somehow this game is slightly intriguing. Toronto has won two in a row, and even short-handed, seems to keep coming up aces.

Their match-up tonight, against the same team they beat last night, the Atlanta Hawks, therefore is a mild curiosity at the end of a long, and yet short, season. A win would go a long ways towards showing just how good this team could be under Dwane Casey, once some top flight talent arrives.

Unfortunately it would also go a long ways towards further injuring their draft hopes, something we touched on this afternoon in our latest edition of the NBA Power Tankings.

And there you have it in a nutshell.

The Raptors need to get back on a losing streak for lottery purposes, yet a win further shows that even with a crew of D Leaguers, newly extended D Leaguers I might add, this club under Casey can get the job done.

Aaaah to be a Raptors' fan.

GO HAWKS!

Ok so Friday didn't exactly work out as planned.

The Toronto Raptors, missing Jose Calderon, Andrea Bargnani, Jerryd Bayless, Leandro Barbosa, Vince Carter...you get the idea.

Yes, that club, devoid of scoring and to a large extent, NBA talent, was supposed to get crushed by the Boston Celtics, the same Celtics who had just beaten the Miami Heat and a bevy of other top teams.

However that didn't happen, and miracle worker Dwane Casey coaxed his troops to an uncanny upset victory.

So as has been the case all season, who knows what happens tonight in Atlanta. The Raptors have always had a tough time against the Hawks so at face value, this looks like another loss. However the way Casey has had his D League crew humming, this could be another case like Friday, where Toronto's opponent takes them for granted early, falls behind, and then can't do enough late to get the win.

I'm hoping for the opposite of course.

With only six games left, this is no time for heroes!

GO HAWKS!

And the Wiser's Slow Clap continues till the season ends!

It's official, Andrea Bargnani has been shelved for the remainder of the season in a move that's not only tank-a-licious, but also completely logical considering Toronto's draft hopes.

Bryan Colangelo has to be applauded for this decision as minus holding Jose out too, and maybe arranging to have Dwane Casey kidnapped for a couple weeks, this continues his streak of making great "lottery-positive" decisions. Trading Barbosa, stocking up on D-Leaguers, you name it he's done it in an attempt to make a run at Anthony Davis without...well...being the Golden State Warriors.

So tonight could be ugly.

REALLY ugly if Jose Calderon, a game-time decision, doesn't play as the Toronto Raptors face the rejuvenated Boston Celtics tonight. The C's have been rolling of late thanks to some of the best defence the NBA has ever seen, and considering Toronto's offensive woes even with a full roster...

...well...

But as we've been doing of late for each and every home game, we turn it over to Ryan McNeill of Hoopsaddict.com for his thoughts on tonight's match:

Let the Wiser's Slow Clap continue!

Andrea Bargnani is again sitting this evening as the Toronto Raptors face off with the Philadelphia 76ers for the ninth time this season.

Ok not ninth.

Only the third.

But doesn't it seem like these teams have played each other more than that this season?

The funny thing is that I'd be fine with the Raps playing ONLY the 76ers for the rest of the season if we were talking about the team that started the season 25 and 17. But they've gone 5 and 10 since a three-game winning streak ending March 11th, and they're barely clinging onto a playoff spot at this point.

Hell, the Raps beat this club last week!

Tonight I'm hoping ends differently (yes, for Anthony Davis purposes) hence the continued slow clap at the absence of Andrea once more.

But for the full breakdown of this match though, we turn it over to Ryan McNeill of Hoopsaddict.com who today is joined by special guest Jay Satur, from Raptors.com:

The sound you're hearing right now is me clapping.

It's kind of a Wiser's Slow Clap, applauding the Toronto Raptors for holding out Andrea Bargnani tonight. My hope of course is that I can keep this applause up for the rest of the season and that the Dinos decide to rest Mr. 13 Games from here on out.

What's the point in him playing?

He just might have one of those 33 point/8 rebound anomalies that gets Toronto a win. A win they really don't need at this point as we noted in today's edition of the NBA Power Tankings.

So without Bargnani our fearless Raptors go, and take on the Indiana Pacers tonight in Indy. The Pacers saw their four-game winning streak end Saturday at the hands of Boston Celtics, but are one of the hottest teams in the NBA right now, sitting third in the East.

Add in the fact that they've beaten the Raptors at home the last six times these clubs have played and...yep...game will probably look eerily similar to last night's against OKC.

But hey, I think we're all looking forward to a certain lottery date next month at this point, so bring on the losses.

GO PACERS!

The Oklahoma City Thunder have lost three in a row.

The Toronto Raptors have won three of their last four.

Something's gotta give right?

Yep, Toronto. The Raptors may get Jose Calderon back this evening but a win over the Oklahoma City Thunder will be no easy task. The Thunder have lost only five games all season in OKC, and the Raps haven't had much road luck this season, in particular against teams with winning records as they've lost six of their last eight in that capacity.

The HQ's Sean Tepper spoke of the "Trap Game" theory in our preview of the match, and I tend to agree. But while I expect a closely fought affair as a result of a slow start by Oklahoma City, I do think the Thunder end up blowing this one open late and getting the W.

Let's hope. Suddenly the Raptors, despite Friday's loss, are at risk of dropping as far as ninth in the race for Anthony Davis with only a couple weeks of action left.

GO THUNDER!