Both teams enter tonight’s contest in Toronto playing well. The Pelicans, after working through some injuries and poor play, have figured some stuff out, and won two straight games. The Raptors are thrashing teams at this point, rattling off seven straight wins on the way to a 12-1 record.
The Raptors haven’t played crunch time in a while. Over the course of their win streak, they have beaten opponents by an average of 13 points. A good Pelicans team represents an obvious challenge. They play at a breakneck pace, and could get their point guard Elfrid Payton back today (he is listed as questionable).