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The Toronto Raptors missed out on the postseason for the second time in the last three seasons. The Raptors finished the 2022-23 campaign with a mediocre 41-41 record, the ninth-best in the Eastern Conference. Toronto made the play-in tournament but lost to the DeMar DeRozan-led tenth-seeded Chicago Bulls by a final score of 109-105.
The Raptors have stagnated over the last few years, as they haven't reached the second round of the postseason since the Orlando Bubble back in 2020. But the Raptors' stagnation has little to do with their core pieces. Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet, Scottie Barnes, and Jakob Poeltl are all All-Star caliber players or better who are worth holding on to for the long haul.
If there's one positive takeaway from the Toronto Raptors' mediocrity this season, it's that the franchise has a lottery pick. Specifically, the Raptors own the 13th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, their third-highest since 2014. In this deep draft, there are numerous players projected to fall in the pick-13 range who could impact winning right away for the Raptors, but there are also several players in this range who the Raptors should not draft. With all of that said, here are two players that the Raptors must avoid with the 13th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft:
2 players Raptors must avoid with No. 13 pick in 2023 NBA Draft
Dereck Lively
7'1″ Duke center Dereck Lively was arguably the top rim protector in the nation in the 2022-23 season. He averaged 2.4 rejections per game for the Blue Devils and a whopping 4.7 blocks per 40 minutes. Lively's size and timing made him a force to be reckoned with while defending the paint. The big man also rebounded the ball at an impressive rate, as he corralled 10.5 rebounds per 40 minutes.
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Does Lively's skillset remind anyone of a Raptors center? Because it should. Jakob Poeltl averaged 9.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game across 26 appearances with the Raptors this season. He checks the same boxes that Lively does from a defensive standpoint.
It would be redundant for the Raptors to use their lottery pick on a defensive-minded center when they already have a terrific one in their starting lineup.
Bilal Coulibaly
Coulibaly is one of the more intriguing international prospects in the 2023 NBA Draft class. He has terrific size for a wing at 6'7″ with a 7'3″ wingspan and projects to be a rock-solid defender in the NBA. But while Coulibaly's defensive potential is mouth-watering, he's too unpolished for the Raptors to take a risk on him with their 13th pick.
Coulibaly didn't create his own shot often this season against inferior competition in France. Plus, his ball-handling ability needs some refining. Coulibaly has a long way to go on the offensive end of the floor before he becomes a consistent rotation player in the NBA.
Only time will tell who the Toronto Raptors decide to select with the 13th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. But what's already clear is that they should avoid selecting either center Dereck Lively or wing Bilal Coulibaly with their late lottery pick.
