The 2020–21 Toronto Raptors season was the 26th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 2019–20 Raptors finished the season with a 53–19 record (in a shortened season due to the COVID-19 pandemic), and lost in the Conference Semifinals to the Boston Celtics.
For the season, the Raptors played a shortened 72-game season, as the season start was delayed until December. The Raptors needed a temporary home arena as a result of travel restrictions placed by the Canadian government due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On November 20, the Raptors announced that they would be beginning the 2020–21 season at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, (the home of the National Hockey League's Tampa Bay Lightning); they also considered the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville (home of the Nashville Predators), the KeyBank Center in Buffalo (home of the Buffalo Sabres), the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, the Prudential Center in Newark (home of the New Jersey Devils), or the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville (home of the Louisville Cardinals). This would be the first season since 1995 (prior to the expansion of the Raptors and Vancouver Grizzlies) not to have NBA regular-season games played in Canada following the Raptors' announcement on February 11, 2021 that they will finish the 2020–21 season in Tampa, as a result of further border restrictions. It was also the first time since 2007 an NBA team has been temporarily displaced from their home city since the New Orleans Hornets were relocated to Oklahoma City due to the damage inflicted by Hurricane Katrina on stadiums in 2005. With a few exceptions, the Raptors played home games behind closed doors for the duration of the season. As with the Toronto Blue Jays (and unlike the Hornets) the Raptors did not change their geographical name on account of their temporary re-location.
The Raptors struggled with injuries throughout the season. On May 10, the Raptors were eliminated from playoff contention, ending their seven-year playoff streak and suffered their worst record since the 2011–12 season. This was the first season under Nurse where the Raptors missed the playoffs.
This was the final season as a Raptor for longtime point guard and six-time NBA All-Star Kyle Lowry, who signed with the Miami Heat in August 2021.
Draft
The Raptors held one first-round pick and one second-round pick in the draft. Because the Raptors had the second-best record in the league, their selections were made at 29th in the first and second round, respectively. With the 29th pick, they selected Malachi Flynn. With the 59th pick, they selected Jalen Harris.
Roster
Standings
Division
Conference
Notes
z – Clinched home court advantage for the entire playoffs
c – Clinched home court advantage for the conference playoffs
y – Clinched division title
x – Clinched playoff spot
pb – Clinched play-in spot
o – Eliminated from playoff contention
* – Division leader
Record vs opponents
(* game decided in overtime)
Game log
Preseason
|- style="background:#cfc;" | 1 | December 12 | @ Charlotte | | Matt Thomas (16) | Anunoby, Baynes (5) | Thomas, VanVleet (5) | Spectrum Center | 1–0 |- style="background:#cfc;" | 2 | December 14 | @ Charlotte | | Fred VanVleet (23) | Chris Boucher (8) | Fred VanVleet (4) | Spectrum Center | 2–0 |- style="background:#fcc;" | 3 | December 18 | Miami | | Kyle Lowry (25) | Pascal Siakam (9) | Fred VanVleet (7) | Amalie Arena | 2–1
Regular season
|- style="background:#fcc;" | 1 | December 23 | New Orleans | | Pascal Siakam (20) | Aron Baynes (9) | Kyle Lowry (10) | Amalie Arena3,800 | 0–1 |- style="background:#fcc;" | 2 | December 26 | @ San Antonio | | Fred VanVleet (27) | Pascal Siakam (15) | Kyle Lowry (10) | AT&T Center0 | 0–2 |- style="background:#fcc;" | 3 | December 29 | @ Philadelphia | | Kyle Lowry (24) | Johnson, Lowry (8) | Kyle Lowry (9) | Wells Fargo Center0 | 0–3 |- style="background:#cfc;" | 4 | December 31 | New York | | Fred VanVleet (25) | Chris Boucher (9) | Fred VanVleet (7) | Amalie Arena3,449 | 1–3