A few days ago, we talked about what the Toronto Raptors could do at the deadline. Knowing Bobby Webster, but actually knowing his mentor Masai Ujiri, tells us that it’s a real possibility for the Raptors to not do anything spectacular at the deadline. Instead, they could wait for the summer to make moves. Yet, there is that little possibility that Webster starts his tenure as leader of the Raptors with a bang and makes a big trade before Feb. 5th’s deadline.
As Josh Lewenberg of TSN reports, the Raptors seem willing to part with more than one of their starters. Webster has apparently been on the phone with several other teams, tossing around possibilities, and doing what Lewenberg calls his “due diligence” on checking in on several targets around the NBA. This is definitely a move reflective of Masai’s tactics — staying extremely informed but not necessarily doing anything. It’s why the Raptors usually end in a ton of trade reports this time of year, because the Masai-now-Bobby method usually involves picking up the phone and having a chat about literally every player whose name is floating around. It’s less about wanting to make a move and more just knowing what options are out there in case you decide you might want to make a move. Something Lewenberg details in his reports as well. We all know the deal in this front office by now.
Can you see why I hate the trade deadline now?
Another good point Josh makes above is that sometimes these little check-ins turn into something more — take Brandon Ingram a year ago. I would have been one to tell you there’s no way the Raptors pull the trigger on that one, and they did. Mind you, the price ended up being lower than expected, which was nice. Another thing about Masai and Bobby — they know how to negotiate.
Now, another thing Lewenberg says is that if the Raptors don’t make a move at the deadline, its more because their “hands are tied” than anything. Makes sense, given their maybe most valuable asset is an injured Jakob Poeltl. The new-ish part in Lewenberg’s reporting is that the Raptors seem to be willing to part with any or all of Poeltl, RJ Barrett, and Immanuel Quickley. Take this with a grain of salt, though, as the Raptors aren’t ones to leak themselves, and these speculations are more coming from other teams’ sources. As we all know, it’s these players (well, their salaries) that are the most valuable in trades for Toronto, and also prevent the Raptors from making any big signings now or in the summer.
If I had to make an educated guess, I would say Quickley was the most likely to be moved at the deadline, if anyone does get dealt. I would say Poeltl, yet his precarious injury situation doesn’t make me as confident that teams will bite. With Barrett, I’m sure it’s not off the table to include him in the deal, but it would have to be the right deal. If Barrett is traded this season, it’s because it’s the only way the Raptors get their top choice guy, in my opinion. He also still has a year left on his contract, so it’s a big undertaking for any team trading for him.
As I mentioned in last week’s update, most of the players that maybe would have been Toronto’s big targets (Young, Davis, Sabonis) are either gone, too expensive, or hurt. Or multiple of those options. We’ll have to see if anything comes up in the next few weeks as teams head into the final days before the deadline.
