Raptors inch closer to 7th spot in draft lottery with a 108-97 win over the Hornets

The Toronto Raptors produce their third 3-game win streak in March with an easy victory over the listless Charlotte Hornets.

Toronto’s not going up or down in the standings with eight more games remaining. So, what happens now?

The Raptors further cemented their place in the draft lottery standings with a 108-97 victory over the visiting Charlotte Hornets. Jakob Poeltl led the way with 24 points, 12 rebounds, and an uber-efficient 12-for-14 shooting. Scottie Barnes chipped in with another well-rounded performance, 18 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists, while Immanuel Quickley had 19 points and 9 assists, draining 5-of-8 from downtown.

The chain, however, would go to Jamal Shead. Maybe it’s a gift for the Cougar alum before his alma mater had an important Sweet 16 game against Purdue. Or maybe it’s because he tied his career-high of 17 points. In any case, “Fred Van Sweet,” as someone on Media Row quipped, deserved the honour.

The Hornets were led by Mark Williams, who had 18 points, 12 rebounds, and 5 assists — a good chunk of those points coming in garbage time. DaQuan Jeffries added 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 steals. Rookie Tidjane Salaun had 12 points and 14 rebounds off the bench.

It was another G.O.A.T. (Greatest of All Toronto) night at Scotiabank Arena. Tonight’s honoured: OVO Sound.

Just before tipoff, the Charlotte Hornets announced that Lamelo Ball would miss the remainder of the season. Losing an All-Star of Ball’s calibre would normally cause the internet to break, but Charlotte hasn’t played a game of any (non-lottery) importance in 4 months this season. Ball joined Brandon Miller, Grant Williams, and Tre Mann on the sidelines until October. Josh Okogie was also on the injury report for Charlotte.

For the Raptors, Ochai Agbaji and RJ Barrett were given the night off. Missing the game due to injuries were Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, Ulrich Chomche, and Jared Rhoden.

The matchup was touted, half-jokingly, as a showdown between tanking teams jostling for position in the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes. For a short while, the magnitude of a loss seemed to affect some of the Raptors.

Immanuel Quickley airballed a floater. Jakob Poeltl airballed his patented push shot. Jamal Shead airballed a wide-open three.

However, like a microcosm of the growth he’s shown this season, Shead quickly adapted, driving into the lane for buckets in the paint on back-to-back possessions.

Toronto entered the game with the #1 defense since the All-Star break, and it showed in the first quarter. The Raptors forced the Hornets into six turnovers and 31.8% shooting, barely breaking a sweat and carrying a 32-20 lead into the second.

As much as the Raptors were in control in the first quarter, they ceded all that control to the visitors in the second quarter.

Charlotte locked in on the defensive end, limiting the Raptors to 31.8% shooting (a mirror image of the Hornets’ shooting from the first quarter).

Say what you will about Toronto’s revolving door of players resting from game to game, but Darko will still use the first three quarters to get the most out of his core players (the ones that do play). When the Hornets trimmed the 12-point advantage down to four, Rajakovic called a timeout and re-inserted Barnes, Poeltl, and Quickley back to stem the tide.

The tide was not stemmed as the Hornets kept up the pressure and went into halftime trailing by only two.

The message has been clear since the All-Star break that the Raptors would use the second half of the season to develop the young players. But that shouldn’t discount the opportunity for the vets to gain experience. Tonight’s matchup against the Hornets presented a great chance for Jakob Poeltl to gauge his growth.

Mark Williams entered the game as one of only 11 players in the NBA averaging at least 15 points and 10 rebounds.

Poeltl absolutely owned the head-to-head matchup against one of the bright, young bigs in the league. Remember, most of Williams’ totals came in garbage time, after Poeltl had exited the game.

While the first quarter showed why the Raptors have more talent than the Hornets (at least the ones playing), the second quarter revealed the lapses in focus that have contributed to Toronto’s current lottery status. The third quarter was about the evolution of this team.

The Raptors came out of halftime with more focus and renewed energy. Poeltl was a perfect 4-for-4 from the field. Barnes was in control on both sides of the floor. Toronto got out in transition, outscoring Charlotte 9-3 in fast break points in the quarter. The Raptors took a comfortable 83-72 lead into the final quarter.

Charlotte never threatened in the fourth quarter. Any time they tried to mount a comeback, Toronto had an answer. Halfway through the fourth quarter, Darko turned to his usual rotation of late: anyone but the starters! I’m joking, of course. Ja’Kobe Walter was still in the game.

As has been the case for most of 2025, the Raptors, at less-than-full-strength, continued beating inferior opponents. Toronto is 4 wins ahead (behind?) Philadelphia for the 6th-worst record and 4 wins behind (ahead?) San Antonio for the 8th-worst record. With only eight games remaining, even with the schedule as soft as it gets, the Raptors are essentially locked into the 7th spot in the draft lottery standings.

With losses (and wins) not really mattering the rest of the way, the only thing left to do is enjoy the remaining eight games on the schedule. This is as stress-free as it gets for a very long time (on the court. Off the court, we will all collectively hold our breaths until after the draft lottery).

All that’s left to do is heed Bobby Webster’s plea: pray to the lottery gods!