The Toronto Raptors have shown basketball fans that even without Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green, they are a force to reckon with. But of course, the NBA playoffs are another matter. it remains that teams will step up their game. A prime requirement for that is to have all players available. Marc Gasol, barely seen this season is good to go and appears to be in pretty great shape.
“As far as I’m aware, he’s fully healed,” Nurse said to Michael Grange of Sportsnet. “And as you know he looks great. His skills look fantastic as well. He looks like he’s in good shape. I don’t see any issues.”
The return of the 35-year-old center gives the Raptors a big boost as they try to make it back-to-back NBA titles. Even without Gasol, the Raptors have managed to stay at the second spot of the Eastern Conference with a 46-18 win-loss record. For as long as they stay the course, they are likely to hang on to that spot. The Milwaukee is ahead of them by 6.5 games. Toronto could catch up but this may only happen if the Bucks drop majority (if not all) of their NBA bubble game assignments.
Also, the Raptors are welcoming back a different kind of Gasol. It appears the Spaniard made the most out of the COVID-19 break. He trimmed down considerably and looks pretty much ready to go.
Finally, rookie teammate, Terrence Davis seems to be awed by the return of Gasol. He claims that the Spaniard is already in playoff mode, hinting that Toronto is primed for a repeat in this year's NBA finals. This is with the assumption that the NBA can resume and finish the 2019-20 season.
“He’ll probably tell you that himself, he’s been in playoff mode since [last] April and he’s gonna continue being in that mode. He looks really, really good, he’s moving really well. He looks like Prime Marc to me, so, I don’t know, man. It’s scary,” Davis said.
The Raptors face an uphill climb with several teams standing in the way of an NBA title-repeat. The Bucks are rolling and Toronto cannot take the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat for granted. Assuming they do get past their Eastern Conference rivals, it gets harder. They face powerhouse teams from the Western Conference that are also out to win the crown. Among the teams that they could face include the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers - ironically where Leonard is playing for now.
