Toronto Raptors – Masai Ujiri (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)
Despite winning an NBA Championship, the Toronto Raptors may very well be looking to rebuild next season. What players might be on the trade block because of that?
When the Toronto Raptors lost NBA Finals MVP, Kawhi Leonard, the entire trajectory of the team changed. With both him and Danny Green choosing to sign elsewhere, Toronto is no longer a serious NBA contender. — although still Champions.
Without these two starters from last year’s title-winning squad, Masai Ujiri and Bobby Webster may be contemplating kickstarting a rebuild. If so, they will need to take stock of their current talent and begin putting together their wishlists from other teams. If the Raptors do decide to break things up, a few players will undoubtedly be on the block.
Determining who the Raptors would make available requires consideration of a number of factors. A players’ age, skillset, contract, long-term ceiling, and locker room presence, all factor into the decision.
The Raptors have one of the most desirable players in the NBA. Pascal Siakam would be of interest to every team in the league. At age 25, he is an All-Star-quality player and winner of this past season’s Most Improved Player award. Siakam can be counted on at both ends of the floor, and best of all, he’s still on his entry-level deal. He makes only $2,351,839 this season and will be a restricted free agent next year.
However, those exact reasons are why he almost certainly won’t be traded. For a rebuilding team, a player like Siakam is gold. He is the future of the franchise.
OG Anunoby is in a similar position. He has demonstrated that he has the ability to do special things, even if he’s not on Spicy P’s level (yet). Entering just his third season, Anunoby’s future on value is greater than his on-court production at this time.
In order to have a successful rebuild, the Raptors will want to acquire both young players and draft picks. Ujiri and Webster will be looking to convert veterans into younger, high potential players or give themselves opportunities to draft one with added picks. Ideally, Toronto will want to avoid any return in a trade that gets the Raptors a high salary veteran on a long-term deal.
That makes things difficult. The Raptors top veterans are all on high paying expiring contracts. Any trade involving them would require a large amount of money being sent back to Toronto. Finding bad players on good teams who make that much money is difficult.
Should Ujiri and Webster find a trading partner who has the roster and assets to get a deal done, they still may wait to see how the season plays out. The Raptors might wait until the trade deadline if they believe it will result in a better return. It would also be useful to see where the Raptors rank in the Eastern Conference to better assess their playoff potential.
Alternatively, the benefit of making a transaction before the start of the season ensures the health of the outgoing player(s). Anyone Raptor identified as trade bait instantly becomes unmoveable if they are unable to play for another franchise.
Decisions will need to be made about where the Raptors see themselves and if a rebuild is viable at this time. If so, they do have three players who could be included in a potential deal.
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July 11, 2019 at 07:02PM
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