NBA 2018-19: Eastern Conference Power Rankings (Week 2)

#1 Toronto Raptors

The Raptors are off to a blistering start

It was staring us right in the face, but most basketball fans refused to let rationale take over in place of the pessimism that surrounded the Kawhi trade to Toronto. The Raptors added a 2-time Defensive Player of the Year and an All-Defensive team contender in place of a sophomore and their worst starting defender after winning 59 games and the #1 seed last season, but we still placed the Celtics above them in the preseason odds.

The Wing Stop, as Spurs fans loved to call Danny Green and Kawhi when the duo was still in Texas, has raised the profile of the Raptors to a whole other level. They have their best squad in franchise history, and their 7-1 start in the first 2 weeks is not a fluke - not even close. Kawhi is still nursing himself back to his explosive 2016-17 best, but he's still taking over games in Miami-LeBronesque ways - there's no other way to put his two-way excellence on a pedestal.

The rest of the squad has gotten off to a rude start, and one can expect the Raptors to run away with the #1 seed unless the Celtics improve drastically.