The Toronto Raptors play host to the New Orleans Pelicans at Amalie Arena on Wednesday night.

For the second season in a row the Raptors and Pelicans will face off in their season openers, however, this season there will be a one slight difference, as the Raptors are playing out of Tampa Bay rather than Toronto. The Raptors new location is only a result of current travel restrictions and is not meant to be a permanent change for the franchise.

The Raptors come into the 2020-21 season after a somewhat disappointing end to their 2019-20 playoff run, as they fell short against the Celtics in the second round. The Raptors saw the departure of two big men, Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka, in the offseason, which is a tough blow because of the signifiant roles each of them played over the last couple of seasons. However, the Raptors did a good job to fill the void by signing Aron Baynes and Alex Len, to join Chris Boucher and Pascal Siakam in the Raptors' front court. The Raptors also added some depth to their wing by picking up DeAndre' Bembry.

Meanwhile, the Pelicans will be looking to make an impact this season, as Zion Williamson enters his second season and the rest of the young core has had time to mature. They also added some good veteran presences with Steven Adams and Eric Bledsoe. Adams gives Williamson a tough and reliable front-court mate and also provides a good target for playmaker, Lonzo Ball. Brandon Ingram is coming off a fantastic season, where he showed his potential as a go-to scorer for the Pelicans and his level of play could be the difference maker on many nights.