Its safe to say the Toronto Raptors have been a pleasant surprise this season, especially since trading Rudy Gay. When general manager Masai Ujiri shipped Gay off to the Sacramento Kings on Dec. 8, many thought it was the beginning of the "Tank." They would lose as many games as possible in attempt to grab the first overall pick and select potential superstar – and Canadian – Andrew Wiggins. Well, the complete opposite has happened. Since the move, the Raptors have won 14 of 20 games and sit in third place in the weak Eastern Conference. So with the recent success, has your perception and expectations of the Toronto Raptors changed? Experts and fans alike thought the 2013-2014 Raptors would be a success if they managed to sneak into the playoffs with the seventh or eighth seed and then get steamrolled by the Miami Heat or Indiana Pacers in the first round. But, with disappointing performances from the New York Knicks and the Brooklyn Nets, Toronto finds itself atop the Atlantic Division with a better than decent shot at not only avoiding the Heat or Pacers in the first round of the playoffs, but earning home-court advantage. Should a second round playoff series be expected from this club now? Over their hot streak, the Raptors have defeated some of leagues elite teams, including the Oklahoma City Thunder and Dallas Mavericks, both on the road, as well as the East-leading Pacers. They were even able to keep it close against the Heat in South Beach. Theyve shown they can play against the big boys of the NBA so does this mean they can push a series to six or seven games or possibly even upset one of those top teams in the playoffs? It seems head coach Dwane Casey finally has the right players to play his type of defensive basketball. The team is third in the league in opponent points per game with 96. The Raptors are getting all-star performances from DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry, whos even getting some MVP consideration. Jonas Valanciunas is averaging close to a double-double in his sophomore season while the players sent over from Sacramento have all contributed, especially Patrick Patterson. At the very least, have the Raptors played well enough to earn respect from around the league? Or maybe Toronto is overachieving and fans should enjoy the success while it lasts, because if Raptors history tells us anything, it may not last long. Let it be known theyre doing all of this in the East where only four teams are over the .500 mark. So with all this considered, has your perception and expectations of the Toronto Raptors changed? As always, its Your! Call. Cheap Buccaneers Jerseys Authentic . - Roger Federer squandered a big lead and lost to No. Cheap Tampa Bay Buccaneers Jerseys .com) - Darius Carter and Ron Baker scored 18 points apiece to help 13th-ranked Wichita State beat Evansville 61-41 on Saturday. http://www.cheapbuccaneersjerseyselite.com/. The announcement was made by the hall on Friday, March 14. She joins Switzerlands Denise Biellmann as this years inductees to the Hall, based in Colorado Springs, CO. Cheap Buccaneers Jerseys . Last July, F1 teams held in-season testing sessions at Silverstone to assess new tires provided by Pirelli after several blowouts on the same circuit at the British Grand Prix in June prompted a furious response from drivers and even a boycott threat the following week. Wholesale Buccaneers Jerseys . Beckham finished 2 for 4, adding a double in the first inning. Chicago has won eight of 12 to get back to .500 (27-27). The White Sox are 6-3 against Cleveland this season after losing 17 of 19 to their American League Central rival in 2013. Mike Aviles went 1 for 2 with a walk and drove in Clevelands run.ORLANDO, Fla. -- James Harden scored 31 points, including 25 in the second half, and the Houston Rockets dug out of a double-digit, first-half hole to beat the Orlando Magic 101-89 on Wednesday night. The Rockets dominated inside, outscoring the Magic 58-26 in the paint. Dwight Howard added 19 points and 14 rebounds in his second trip to Orlando to face his former team. Houston trailed in the second quarter by as many as 14 points, but battled back to win for the 13th time in 15 outings. Arron Afflalo led the Magic with 18 points. The Magic dropped to 0-2 this season against the Rockets. Orlando played without Jameer Nelson and Victor Oladipo. Nelson was out sick and Oladipo missed his first game of the season with soreness in his left ankle. Howard scored 11 points in the third quarter, connecting on five of his six field-goal attempts, to help the Rockets take 10-point lead into the fourth. The Magics second unit surged at the start of the period, and cut the deficit to three and prompted the Rockets to quickly re-insert their starters. Harden immediately scored five straight points, and Terrence Jones added a layup to push Houstons lead back up to 86-76 with 5:37 to play. Orlando never got closer than eight points the rest of the way. Orlando fans greeted Howard with a round of boos during player introductions and another the first ttime he touched the ball after the game tipped off.dddddddddddd Howard briefly silenced them, slamming down a dunk on the Rockets first possession. It was one of his few highlights early, though, as the Magic rode hot early shooting and jumped out to a 14-point first-quarter advantage on the way to a 48-41 halftime lead. The Magic did honour Howard, with a video tribute on the scoreboard between the first and second quarter as part of the teams season-long 25th anniversary celebration. But even that was met with sporadic boos during the presentation from fans. Howard said before the game that he thought the video package could bring about some emotion. He was on the bench when it was played, but managed a slight smile as the booing persisted. It continued whenever Howard touched the ball, and he struggled at different points in the half, finishing with just seven points. Orlando started the half connecting on 10 of its first 14 field-goal attempts. That cooled to 44 per cent by halftime, with Houston holding a 26-18 advantage on scoring inside the paint, and 28-18 rebounding edge. Notes: Oladipo had been the only Magic player to appear every game this season before Wednesday. Magic coach Jacque Vaughn said the rookies injury doesnt stem from a particular incident, but is just general soreness. ... Former NBA player Grant Hill sat courtside. 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