The Toronto Raptors' season ended in familiar fashion on Monday night as they were eliminated from the playoffs by the Cleveland Cavaliers for the third straight year.

It was also the second consecutive campaign in which they'd suffered a sweep at the hands of the Cavs.

Despite their past failings, this outcome was surprising due to the record-breaking season they had.

Toronto finished as the number one seed in the Eastern Conference for the first time in franchise history and sealed home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.

They also won a record 59 games and were the most dominant team in the east as they boasted the best bench in the entire NBA.

With the Cavaliers finishing in fourth and going through a tumultuous year, this was supposed to be the Raptors' best chance to end LeBron James' reign as the king of the conference.

After Cleveland competed in seven gruelling games to scrape past the Indiana Pacers in round one, Toronto's chances were looking even better.

But when it came down to it, they once again failed to even lay a glove on the Ohio-based franchise as LeBron and co. had their way with the men from Canada.

At the team's end of season press conference on Tuesday, Kyle Lowry reflected on their campaign and didn't mince his words about how he felt.

"For me it was championship or bust, that's what I feel," Lowry said, per ESPN. "That's what I always feel, so a wasted year for me. We felt like we could possibly make the NBA Finals. That was our goal.

"To be the best, you've got to beat the best. We've continuously failed against the team that made the Finals the last three years."

Ultimately, Toronto's collapse in game one proved to be the decisive moment as they coughed up a 10-point lead and missed their final 12 shots in the fourth quarter.

They led throughout the encounter but their cold stretch allowed the Cavs to get back into the game and seize the initiative, going on to win it in overtime and dealing a huge psychological blow to the home team.

"We weren't ready to be as physical as we needed to be," Lowry said. "We did a great job in the regular season, but playoffs are just different."

It's back to the drawing board for the franchise as they once again look for how they can come back from this deja vu moment.

Reports are indicating that head coach Dwane Casey's future is in serious doubt and the Raptors fueled these rumours as he and president Masai Ujiri didn't address the media.

Big changes could be in the offing for Toronto as they look to find another way to get over their hump.

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