Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) celebrates scoring a basket against the Dallas Mavericks late in the second half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2015, in Dallas. Lowry lead all scoring with 27-points in the 102-91 Raptors win. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Turn the clock back a year. The Raptors pulled off an impressive start to the 2014-15 season going 4-1. Raptors fans were ecstatic about the early success of the team. It couldn't get any better than that.

Lo and behold, this year's squad one-upped that feat, and look like a better team than last season.

The bench is improved, as is the starting lineup. The biggest improvement from the first five games of the season: Defence. The Raptors have allowed just 95 points per 100 possessions. For comparison, only four teams last season had a defensive rating under 100. Granted, things are likely to change, but it's a nice start for a team trying to rediscover it's defensive prowess. Toronto's net differential leaped from 3.6 points in the first five games of the 2014-15 season to a whopping 8.4 during their undefeated streak. They're are on a roll right now and seem to have their defensive presence back, and it's keeping them in games.

DeMarre Carroll offers some relief on the defensive end for Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan. As a result, both are taking care of business offensively averaging around 20 points per game. So far, Carroll's primary assignments have included Paul George and Kevin Durant, who were both relatively held in check by the swingman.

In the backcourt we've seen a lot of lineups with both Lowry and Cory Joseph playing side by side. Joseph is an underrated and capable defender, and is a good fit to play next to the upbeat and tough Lowry, allowing Kyle to take care of business on the fast break, and cut passing lanes on the defensive end.

On the offensive end, Terrence Ross seems to have accepted his role as the first guy off the bench, evidenced by his brand new 3-year deal. Ross has been a real heat check guy to this point of his career and is a threat to drop 30 points any given night, but is very capable of filling the void left by Lou Williams. He's performed nicely despite the reduction in minutes, and his per 36 numbers resemble that of a player drafted in the top 10 in 2012.

View photos OKLAHOMA CITY, OK- NOVEMBER 4: DeMar DeRozan #10 of the Toronto Raptors shoots the ball against the Oklahoma City Thunder on November 4, 2015 at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Photo by Layne Murdoch/NBAE via Getty Images) More

Toronto has also been very active going to the basket this season, and as a result have been getting a lot of free throw attempts. In their matchup with Oklahoma City, the Raptors got 39 chances at the line and converted 32 of them. It ended up being the team's saving grace as they set up a run in the final two minutes to snag the game from the Thunder. Getting to the line has been an area of strength for this team, and was a key part of their game last year as well, averaging 35 attempts per game during their 4-1 start. They're doing a lot of the same this year: Toronto is one of five teams in the NBA to average over 30 free throws per game this season, and it's helping them control pace on the offensive end.

The Raptors' upcoming opponents are Orlando, Miami, New York, Philadelphia and New Orleans. Those teams have a combined record of 6-17, and given how well the Raptors have been playing to start the season, they have a shot at finishing the week with one of the best records in the league.