And now the hard part. Or maybe the interesting part. But definitely the business part. 

The Toronto Raptors had less than 12 hours to process their six-month season and seven-game playoff series coming to a sudden halt on Sunday night in Cleveland before going through their post-season medicals, exit interviews and saying their collective goodbyes in Toronto on Monday morning.

Even if you knew the possibility of it was coming – by definition a Game 7 is win or go home – it hits hard when it does. 

“It’s a little bit of sad. It’s a little bit, we didn't know it would come so soon. It was a bit of an abrupt ending,” said Brandon Ingram as the Raptors gathered to say their farewells at the OVO Athletic Centre. “So we enjoyed each other on the plane last night, played cards, listened to music. Just enjoying our last time together before the off-season came about.”

It’s here and there are subjects that can’t be avoided. For all of the fresh air and bright light that the Raptors' better-than-expected, 46-win season (a 16-win jump from the year before) and fight-to-the-end, first-round showing against Cleveland provided, the goal from this point to the start of training camp next season is to be a better team than they are today.

There are plenty of avenues for that. Second-year wing Ja’Kobe Walter – whose post-all-star breakout showed signs of being sustainable in the playoffs – pledged to tighten up his diet and be more intentional about adding strength and size to his wiry frame. Immanuel Quickley said the next few days would be about identifying two or three things that he can add to his game – once his balky hamstring heals up – and drilling down on those, rather than casting his net as wide as he has in the past. Collin Murray-Boyles expects to spend long stretches of his off-season in Toronto working with the Raptors coaching staff, trying to accelerate his development after a rookie season that was even better than he was hoping for. 

But for all the Raptors' promise, there are some challenges as general manager Bobby Webster tries to look for areas and means of improving a team that will be expected to make the playoffs in what will likely be an even more competitive Eastern Conference a year from now. 

A number of contractual commitments that........

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