The Eastern Conference has featured more turnover in its playoff picture over the last six years than the Western Conference has. But here are the Toronto Raptors, who hadn't won a best-of-seven series before last year, making their fourth straight appearance as a top-4 seed.

Dwane Casey, Masai Ujiri, Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan have brought consistency to the North. Now, we wonder if they can take another step after advancing to the conference finals a year ago.

The Raptors look like a better and more playoff-ready team than they've ever been. February trades for Serge Ibaka and P.J. Tucker have given them a more versatile defense. And before Lowry missed more than a month of action with a wrist injury, the Raptors' All-Star backcourt was having its best season.

But the ghosts of playoffs past always seem to hang around the Air Canada Centre. Though they eventually made their way to a 2-2 tie with Cleveland last year, the Raptors struggled through two ugly series against inferior offensive teams.

This year's first round opponent could muck things up just as much or more than the Indiana Pacers and Miami Heat did last year. The Bucks aren't an elite team on either end of the floor, but they certainly have the length to make things difficult for Toronto's stars. And though he saw 5 1/2 games of playoff action two years ago, this could be the coming out party of Giannis Antetokounmpo.

It's the only first round series between two teams that have never faced each other in the playoffs and it's a chance for both teams to prove that they've taken a real step forward this season.

Here are some statistical notes to get you ready for the 3-6 series in the East, with links to let you dive in and explore more.

Pace = Possessions per 48 minutes

OffRtg = Points scored per 100 possessions

DefRtg = Points allowed per 100 possessions

NetRtg = Point differential per 100 possessions

Toronto Raptors (51-31)

Pace: 97.1 (23)

OffRtg: 109.8 (6)

DefRtg: 104.9 (8)

NetRtg: +4.9 (4)

Regular season:Team stats | Advanced splits | Player stats | Player shooting | Lineups

vs. Milwaukee:Team stats | Advanced splits | Player stats | Player shooting | Lineups