The Toronto Raptors are looking to enter a new era. Following their 2019 NBA championship triumph, the Raptors have undergone a gradual decline, and it eventually led to the departure of former head coach Nick Nurse, whose differences with the front office proved to be too far of a chasm to bridge.
The pieces are still there for the Raptors to, perhaps, make a leap into playoff contention as soon as next season. Pascal Siakam, a two-time All-Star, is still in town, while Scottie Barnes and OG Anunoby are still around to give Siakam some help. But it's very likely as well that the Raptors decide that they have reached their ceiling with Siakam and Anunoby leading the way, choosing to trade them away for assets that will help them build for the future.
This offseason will be such a crucial one for the Raptors. Nevertheless, with Masai Ujiri at the helm, the franchise remains in safe hands. Ujiri has built different iterations of playoff teams in the past, and even with the Raptors' fair share of obstacles to navigate, a turnaround may just be on the horizon.
With that said, the Raptors definitely shot themselves on the foot by choosing to compete for a playoff spot. They fell short in the end, and all that brought them was worse lottery odds. The Raptors have exactly a 1 percent chance at Victor Wembanyama, making them likely to pick at the back-end of the lottery during the 2023 NBA Draft.
Of course, the Raptors have drafted well from all over the draft in recent years. They took Pascal Siakam with the 27th overall pick, OG Anunoby with the 23rd, Norman Powell with the 46th, and Fred VanVleet even blossomed despite going undrafted. Simply put, the Raptors have shown the ability to maximize their draft picks, wherever it may land, and the same could very well go for the 13th pick of the upcoming draft.
Thus, for the Raptors to truly maximize that selection, they must target Cason Wallace, the point guard out of Kentucky.
Why Raptors must target Cason Wallace in 2023 NBA Draft
For years, the Raptors have placed a premium on defensively versatile wings and big men, stocking up on size and length as the league continues to trend towards skilled size. And this emphasis has borne fruit; OG Anunoby is one of the best 3 and D players in the league, Scottie Barnes could very well develop into one of the more confounding mismatch problems in the NBA, and Pascal Siakam has developed his ballhandling and scoring touch to such an incredible extent, becoming the Raptors' best player in the process.
However, the Raptors may have tended to overlook other facets of the game as a result. Their roster to begin the year didn't make much functional sense, as they had little to no quality options at the guard positions beyond Fred VanVleet and Gary Trent Jr., while their big men weren't really particularly adept at defending the rim.
Of course, it's always a foolish move to prioritize fit over drafting the best player available. Talent always reigns supreme in the NBA, and no matter which circumstance, it almost always gets a chance to shine through. But what if the fit and talent arrive in one package, like in 19-year old point guard Cason Wallace?
The Raptors love their defensively strong point guards who can space the floor at a reliable rate and can run the offense well. Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet, over the past decade, have combined to solidify the Raptors at that position. However, VanVleet is an impending free agent, and given the uncertainty in the franchise's direction, the 29-year old point guard may very well decide to sign elsewhere.
Cason Wallace looks like such a perfect fit for what the Raptors want out of their floor general — a steady, pass-first presence who is capable of being extremely disruptive defensively. Wallace may not have had the greatest three-point shooting season at Kentucky, but the 6'4 guard's shot mechanics look promising enough that he'll develop into a much more dangerous weapon from deep over time.
At this stage, Wallace's defense is where he butters his bread. His ballhandling skills, especially if he were to become a lead guard, need to improve. But in an offense where he will share the ball often with Scottie Barnes, Wallace won't necessarily have the burden to commandeer the Raptors from day one.
Some talent evaluators think that Wallace's game echoes that of Jrue Holiday's and De'Anthony Melton's, or even Immanuel Quickley's, and Marcus Smart's. For the 13th pick, if Wallace could take a little bit of what each of those four can do best and incorporate it into his game, the Raptors will certainly be pleased with coming away with his services at the back end of the lottery.
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