Raptors vs. Kings: Will Toronto team will show up this time?

Unlike many other fourth quarters for the Raptors this year, Toronto's show down with the Kings in Sacramento went wrong. It was November 15th and for most of the game, the Raptors looked in control. The Kings--namely DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay--were getting their points, but they couldn't break the six, eight, ten point lead Toronto kept maintaining.

That is, of course, until the Kings suddenly did, outscoring the Raptors 28-19 in the fourth quarter and running away with a 107-101 win. The Raptors got strong games from Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan and DeMarre Carroll (remember him?) but couldn't get it done. It's worth noting, however, that Jonas Valanciunas (who today remains out) had a terrible game that night as he got manhandled by Cousins on both ends of the court in his 20 minutes.

Now the Raptors are in a weird spot. The bench has been all over the place--a good game from Terrence Ross here, a sterling starting performance by James Johnson there. Lowry has looked strangely mortal as of late. And DeRozan, our favourite bricklayer, has suddenly become the team's model of efficiency. Toronto feels capable of beating or losing to almost anyone right now.

So, which Toronto Raptors team will we get today? The one that gets off to slow starts? The one that can finish any game with a win? Something in between?

Let's see.

First, enjoy Alex Wong's game preview.

Then, let's get to the comments!