The Toronto Raptors are going to Houston tonight to face the Rockets. That’s where they are set to face Fred VanVleet for the first time.
VanVleet spent his first seven years in the NBA as a Raptor before signing with the Rockets last summer. The contract he signed during the off-season was a three-year $128 million deal.
Houston is trying to get to the playoffs with their young core of Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., and Alperen Sengun. They add veterans like VanVleet and Dillion Brooks to help the Rockets get to the playoffs.
What does VanVleet going to Houston mean for Toronto?
With VanVleet gone, this put Toronto in a weird position. The Raptors aren’t good enough to be contenders but they weren’t bad enough to be a top-five lottery team.
They decided to sign Dennis Schroder in the summer to see how this team played this season. Unfortunately, they didn’t start the season well.
So, the Raptors decided to rebuild the roster around Scottie Barnes. They did that by trading O.G. Anunoby to the New York Knicks and Pascal Siakam to the Indiana Pacers.
This team is not looking to compete for the championship like in years past. Instead, they are looking to build the future of the Raptors.
Barnes, Immanuel Quickley, and RJ Barrett can lead the Raptors to the playoffs. But for now, they are trying to let Barnes and Barrett unleash their potential as great players while letting Quickley reach his full potential as a starting point guard in the NBA.
The last time both teams faced each other the Raptors beat the Rockets in a 117-110 victory in Houston. Toronto is currently 12 in the Eastern Conference with a record of 17-30 while Houston is currently 11 in the Western Conference with a record of 22-25.
This game could be fun to watch because Raptors fans get to see VanVleet play in a Rockets uniform while getting the younger players some experience. And for Houston, a win gets them one step closer to a spot in the postseason.
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