The Toronto Raptors will have to make some interesting decisions at the NBA trade deadline. After winning an NBA title three seasons ago, they're clearly not ready to again compete for an NBA title. They do have some interesting pieces on their team and if they can go out and get a star or two, it could be a team that is tough to beat in the Eastern Conference.
Toronto does have some young talent and some interesting pieces on their team, but the reality is they are in no shape or form ready to compete for an NBA title, but that is fine. They do have some questionable contracts on their roster and some guys that they might want to move at the trade deadline. They have some young players who aren't necessarily bad players and could definitely bring back a decent return in a trade package which is another thing that they are most certainly going to have to think about at the deadline.
Regardless of if the Raptors want to go into a rebuilt situation, or go out and get that second star, there are still a few guys on the roster that they should definitely be trading. Whether it's because their contracts aren't that great, they are young and they can get back a good return, or they simply just aren't an NBA championship-caliber player who's going to help their team out.
They made an interesting decision to let Kyle Lowry sign elsewhere in free agency which could have been the start of the rebuild in the front offices' mind. They did a great job in the NBA Draft by taking Scottie Barnes, who was an interesting pick at the time. He has panned out better than most expected him to and the Raptors deserve a pat on the back for doing the right scouting and getting the best available option for them which was clearly Barnes at the time.
In order for the Raptors to get where they want to be, whether that be in a rebuild situation, or going out and getting a few guys, they're going to need to trade some of their players. Let's take a look at three guys that the Raptors could benefit from trading to help them either speed up their rebuild or go out and get a star.
Raptors NBA Trade Deadline
3. Goran Dragic
This was actually a very good pick-up by the Raptors during the offseason last year, but he clearly doesn't want to be in Toronto as he has not played a game yet for this team. Whatever that situation might be it is obviously not ideal for this Raptors organization and with how much money he makes, there's no reason to wait around for him so he's going to have to be traded as soon as possible.
He's arguably on one of the most interesting contracts in all of the NBA because he's getting nearly 20 million dollars for only one year. There are many other players out there who are making that same amount, or much less, that is much better than he is.
This is going to be the first priority of the Raptors during the trade deadline and it makes a lot of sense because he isn't going to play anytime soon in Toronto and they clearly can go out and get somebody else, or save that money for the future.
2. Chris Boucher
This is an interesting one because he certainly isn't a player that panned out the way that the Raptors were expecting him to. That's completely fine because there are a ton of players that that happens to in the NBA and he can be used as a trade option because he is making seven million for one year. He is still valuable to some other teams because of his length and rebounding ability at the forward position.
He's not exactly somebody who's going to get back a favorable return, but he is somebody who could be used to match a salary if the Raptors do decide to go out and get that second star. That is certainly something that is always of value.
1. Precious Achiuwa
This is a really interesting one because he is still very young and he is going to be a really good player in this league. He is currently only 22 years old and he's already averaging eight points per game and 7.8 rebounds for the Raptors. He's also on a very favorable contract, so it wouldn't make a ton of sense from the Raptors' perspective to get rid of him. The only time that they would decide to get rid of him is if they do want to go out and get that big-name player because he's going to be somebody that other teams are going to want for their star.
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