Toronto Raptors forward Amir Johnson (15) guard Kyle Lowry (7) and guard Louis Williams (23) celebrate after their game against the Atlanta Hawks at Philips Arena. The Raptors won 126-115.Dale Zanine
Greivis Vasquez was speaking to a large circle of journalists Thursday when DeMar DeRozan squeezed his way in through the crowd and affectionately draped an arm around Vasquez's neck.
This season's Toronto Raptors are a tight-knit bunch. And on a day ESPN pegged the Raptors' chances at winning the NBA title at a whopping 41 per cent, they scoffed. Anything said outside of their gym, they said, is all just noise.
"We don't care about nothing ESPN is saying, honestly," DeRozan said. "Nobody cares what anybody says. We care about everybody that's got this Raptors jersey on. Everything else don't matter to us, man."
"We've got our confidence," Vasquez added. "We don't need anybody to talk about us, whether it's good or bad."
The Raptors practised the day after their 126-115 victory at Atlanta that kept Toronto even with Memphis atop the NBA standings (13-2), and boosted their win streak to six games.
Thursday's ESPN's Hollinger Playoff Odds gave the Raptors a 100-per-cent chance at making the playoffs, and a 71-per-cent chance of making the NBA final.
They're lofty predictions never before seen in Toronto, but Raptors coach Dwane Casey similarly shrugged them off. "I'm not a betting man, how many more games have we got to go? A lot of games to go. I'm not putting any credence in that," Casey said.
The Raptors host the Dallas Mavericks (11-5) on Friday amid a huge buzz. The players say they're not looking at records, or getting caught up in the buzz. They're just enjoying playing.
"This is the best team I've played with by far," DeRozan said. "Not just basketball-wise either. Personnel. Everybody gets along, everybody has a great relationship with one another. That goes a long way … the chemistry that we have is amazing."
Asked what he's thankful for – Thursday was Thanksgiving in the U.S. – DeRozan answered, his arm still slung around Vasquez: "Having teammates like Greivis. Honestly. Having teammates like all these guys here. Because it makes every day easier, even on the tough days, you find something to joke about, laugh about, have fun about."
While the Raptors are off to easily their best start in franchise history, they've had a favourable schedule at home that included a stretch of seven games in a row at the Air Canada Centre. They've also had some luck on their side, playing a Memphis Grizzlies team that was missing five players to a flu virus, and an injury-riddled Oklahoma City squad missing stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.
"I don't believe in luck. I don't," DeRozan said. "I understand how hard I work, how hard this man works (arm still around Vasquez), how hard the other 13 players on this team work. And when people say the luck thing to me, I take it personally, because I know how hard we work to be as good as we are."