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March 25, 2014
Sportsnet One - 7:00 PM EST
When you look at this week's schedule of opponents for the Toronto Raptors, the first thought that might come to mind is "nice, four wins."
Indeed, matches against the Cavs, Magic and Celtics (twice) look great on paper for a Raptors team that's faced some adversity of late, and could use a few non-Thunderesque opponents.
However I'm going to caution against such a view (contrary to my usual tone in this space!) as all three opponents pose potential issues for Toronto and as we've seen lately, clubs like the Atlanta Hawks and New Orleans Pelicans have given the Dinos all sorts of problems.
Yes, this could be trap week and it kicks off tonight against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs have only won three of their last 10 games, but put a halt to the red-hot Knicks' winning streak Sunday night, beat the Suns and Warriors in that span, and lost very closely contested matches to the likes of the Thunder and Heat.
So this will require a solid 48 minutes of effort tonight, not just a strong fourth quarter, in order to get "Trap Week" off to a strong start.
GO RAPS!