As we approach the NBA Trade Deadline, now just a few weeks away, it’s a good time to reflect on the Raptors roster as it currently exists, what’s working and where outside help may be in order.
Thankfully, the lovely listeners / readers in the Locked On Raptors Discord server answered the call and served up a bushel of questions for me all about the guys Toronto has on hand, how they fit with one another, and who could be in line to be replaced or at least complemented with a new addition some time in the next couple transaction cycles. Let’s dig into another mailbag!
Insomniaman asks: Are there are young bigs in the league you could be OK with if they did move Jak for them? Yves Missi? Derek Lively? Zach Edey?! Some other option?
If you read or listen to my work, you know by now that I’m pretty staunchly against trading Jakob Poeltl. The appeal of shipping him out to start the year was that it’d save them from winning too many games and hurting their lottery odds. Not sure if you’ve checked the standings lately, but they’re doing alright on that front with Jak on the team. And shipping him out now for a return that, thanks to a restricted trade market, just isn’t going to yield enough to be worth caving in the team’s floor.
Now, if the Raptors were able to spin Poeltl into package that features a ready-made replacement, or someone who projects to be that guy by next year, then you’d have my attention. All the guys mentioned here — Missi, Lively and Edey would probably fit the bill (though I remain pretty dubious of Edey as a playoff-safe player), but I’d be shocked if any of them are actually gettable. Lively is a stud on a good team, Missi is one of the few good things happening in New Orleans, and the Grizzlies probably aren’t positioned to take on money past this year with Santi Aldama to take care of this summer.
Beyond those guys, the pickins are slim, if we’re keeping things semi-realistic. I’ve mentioned Trayce Jackson-Davis of the Warriors as someone halfway interesting to me in a Poeltl trade return, but he’s pretty undersized and probably not a long-term high end starter. I’m not a Nic Claxton fan, and the Nets probably aren’t a Jak team. The Spurs have plenty of wing and guard prospects, but not much on the front court behind Wemby. Phoenix could use Jak, but has nothing even sort of interesting to offer. And we’re already running out of sensible landing spots for Poeltl.
I remain unmoved on this. Keep Jak, and figure out the rest of your big man picture some other way.
ToebeesawYYC asks: How important is it to get a backup 5? And what kind of 5 (above the rim, defensive, shoot 3’s, etc) because Kelly has some major limitations.
How topical!
I don’t think getting a backup matters much for this season, really. If the team valued having insulation behind Poeltl, they’ve have brought some in over the summer. It very much seems like they’ve opted for life without backup by design as a very easy way to help the tank trudge along (same goes for their backup point guard spot, though Jamal Shead is changing the shape of that position by the day).
It’d be fantastic if you could get a big with some stretch to offset Jak’s paint-bound role, but talls who shoot and bring the requisite level of defense are hard to come by. A rim protecting big with some finishing ability on the roll would be a very welcome addition; anyone who can help take the Raptors from having 30 minutes of solid center play a night to a full 48 would be, relaly. If that big has some big ups as a lob threat, or a inkling of a three-point stroke, that’s gravy.
In short, the kind of backup five they need is: someone competent, regardless of the skillset.
Midrange Assassin: Is a starting lineup with Ochai in instead of RJ a possible thing. Or if Ochai starts is it 100% instead of Gradey Dick?
Anything is possible when you’re 9-31!
While I’m on record thinking the Raptors should give plenty of run to their current starting five (or at least, current when Immanuel Quickley is healthy), I think there is plenty of room to experiment with all the different iterations the Raptors could play with to start games.
By the numbers, Quickley-Dick-Agbaji-Barnes-Poeltl is the most successful of the possibilities when mixing and matching Dick, Agbaji and Barrett on the wings, but as is the case with most Toronto lineups, the sample size is next to nothing to go on. That five-man group is probably the most shooting-forward lineup the Raptors can roll out while maintaining some semblance of two-way balance, so it’s probably worth getting a look at late in games on nights where Barrett doesn’t quite have it.
That said, Agbaji-Barrett feels like the 2-3 combo that most optimizes defense and offensive punch. Barrett’s play finishing is really valuable, and while I know some folks love the idea of Barrett as a bench-carrying sixth man, I’m not sold on him running the show if Barnes and Quickley are both sitting having seen his struggles guiding the offense when Barnes has been sidelined this year.
There’s also the political element to consider. Can the Raptors really ask Barrett, one of the highest paid guys on the team who’s a burgeoning national icon to come off the bench if there isn’t much of a “this will lead us to more wins” upside to pitch? That feels like a way to introduce some weird locker room dynamics to a team that has seemingly avoided that kind of strife despite being on pace for 18 wins. Maybe that’s something you broach going into next season, but now doesn’t feel like the time to rock the boat.
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Today on the podcast I went solo to field even more questions from the sickos in the Locked On Raptors Discord — which is free to join by the way! Enjoy the show!
