Lowry eyes No. 1 seed as key to toppling Cavs
The Toronto Raptors are coming off their best season to date, winning a franchise-high 56 games and reaching the Eastern Conference finals.
However, they couldn't figure out a way to win at Quicken Loans Arena, where the Cleveland Cavaliers outscored them by 88 points over three playoff games en route to clinching the series in six.
| Game | Location | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Quicken Loans Arena | 115-84 CLE |
| 2 | Quicken Loans Arena | 108-89 CLE |
| 3 | Air Canada Centre | 99-84 TOR |
| 4 | Air Canada Centre | 105-99 TOR |
| 5 | Quicken Loans Arena | 116-78 CLE |
| 6 | Air Canada Centre | 113-87 CLE |
Starting point guard Kyle Lowry thinks the answer to getting past the Cavs, who went on to win it all, could lie in Toronto's regular-season efforts.
"We couldn't win a game (in Cleveland) in the playoffs, couldn't get close," he admitted to David Aldridge of NBA.com.
"We have to find a way to win a game on the road, especially them having the 1-seed. But maybe our chance is to get that 1-seed. That would help, to have home court advantage."
The Raptors, who finished just one game behind Cleveland in 2015-16, retained their core (minus Bismack Biyombo) over the summer.
They're banking on continuity, internal improvement from young players like Jonas Valanciunas and Norman Powell, and a healthy DeMarre Carroll to help get them over the hump.
Should they meet the defending champions again in the postseason, Lowry said they must stop LeBron James and Kyrie Irving.
That'll prove a difficult task - at home or on the road - but the Raptors seem up for it.
Toronto opens the season Oct. 26 versus the Detroit Pistons.