The Toronto Raptors had a very disappointing season. With a record of 27-40 currently sitting in 12th in the Eastern Conference 4 games back of the Wizards for 10th and a spot in the play-in, they lost a heartbreaker to the Wizards in overtime on Thursday night that essentially put the nail in the coffin on their season. They definitely had the toughest time dealing with this COVID season as they had to play their games in Tampa Bay, Florida, because they would have had to cross the border too often if they played their games in Toronto. They also had a lot of players miss time with the virus and in the NBA’s health and safety protocols. So Toronto's season will end next week, but they have cap space, likely a top 10 pick in the draft, and a lot of good young players, the future looks bright in the north.
Pascal Siakam has been awesome over the last couple of weeks and he was dynamite on Thursday as well scoring 44 points, while grabbing 11 rebounds, dishing out 7 assists, on 17-28 shooting and 2/6 from 3 point range. He did miss 3 key free throws down the stretch of the game but don’t let take away from the fact that he has looked like pre-bubbly Spicy P as of late. Also, in case you have not heard, Fred VanVleet is a certified killer. The dude has hit massive shots throughout his career dating back to the Raptors title run in 2019. He and Kyle Lowry were so good last season as the Raptors captured the number 2 seed in the East. VanVleet continues to progress improving his scoring totals every season of his career, and his assists and rebounds have jumped each year as well. Averaging 19.6 points, 6.3 assists and 4.2 rebounds, VanVleet looks to be a part of the Raptors future. OG Anunoby is the third Raptor that is locked in long term. Anunoby is an elite defender who is averaging 16 points a night. He is a guy who can fit in as the 4th guy on a very good team and I expect the Raptors to be back competing for the playoffs next year with these guys at the helm but there are still questions they need to face.
The Raptors have some free agency questions, with the first being Kyle Lowry. Lowry will be an unrestricted free agent after and Toronto did not trade him at the trading deadline, it opened up the possibility of a return. The other primary team that would likely be in the running is the Miami Heat. There would be a couple of teams that want a sign and trade but Miami is likely to be the biggest threat to sign the veteran guard. Lowry and VanVleet play so well together. They are both pit bull guards who are not scared of anyone. With all that said, I am not sure if Lowry will be a priority for the Raptors to resign as guard does not seem like a need right now. Toronto will have big priorities this summer. They will need to resign Gary Trent Jr. and sign some kind of center. Let’s start with Trent. After coming over in a trade from Portland at the deadline, Gary Trent has been good averaging 16.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.3 assists on 42% from the field and 37% from three point range. He can be inconsistent at times, however, so the Raptors will have to make a decision; what is the price point you are willing to match. Is it Joe Harris money at 4yrs/$75 million? I am not sure if I would go there as you do not want to be tied into a bad contract going forward, limiting the moves you can make. I would negotiate with Trent and try to sign him if I was Massi Ujiri but I am interested to see what an offer sheet would look like. The last thing Toronto needs to do is address the center spot, the dream is they get up in the lottery and are able to draft Evan Mobley. However, a more likely idea is Khem Birch, who they signed in the buyout market, or Daniel Theis could be a good option as he can stretch the floor and is really good at defense. Toronto will have holes to fill this summer and it should be interesting.
The Draft is also a spot the Raptors can fill out their roster as well. They should have a high pick so they can add a wing, a guard, or even a big man. Right now they are slotted at the 7th pick, some options they can look at are Tennessee guard Keon Johnson, Arkansas guard Moses Moody, Duke forward Jalen Johnson, Baylor guard Davion Mitchell, and Texas big man Kai Jones. The prayer is they are able to enter the top 5 of the draft as most people see a massive drop off from pick 5 to pick 6. The ‘big 5’ of this draft are, Cade Cummingham a guard from Oklahoma State, Jalen Suggs a guard from Gonzaga, the previously mentioned Evan Mobley a big man from USC, and Jonathan Kuminga (forward) and Jalen Green (guard) both whom played in the G-League. Toronto will look to add the best player they can in the draft and allow themselves to fill their needs in free agency.
The Toronto Raptors have done a lot of winning over the past 8 years making the playoffs all but this year and winning a championship in 2019. I do not expect the Raptors to be down for long as they head back north and feel reenergized by being back in their home arena for what will be 19 months come the end of October, when next season should begin. I do not think the Raptors will be down for long and if they play their cards right, should be back in the playoffs next year.
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