While Masai hasn’t said anything yet about his plans, clearly he needs to shake up the Raptors. Here are some ideas.
The barbarians are at the door with clubs and pitchforks. They demand blood.
Toronto Raptors President Masai Ujiri has to offer the proverbial sacrificial lamb or risk an angry mob. But in his case, it isn’t about appeasing them but saving the team.
Changes need to be made.
If another embarrassing playoff defeat at the hands of LeBron and the Cavs in which the Raptors became the first top seed in almost 50 years to get swept before the Conference Finals doesn’t demand change, then nothing will.
There is no shortage of blame to pass around and head coach Dwane Casey is often the first target.
But this isn’t Casey’s fault and cutting him will be a huge mistake.
Instead, the Masai should look to “blow up” the core of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan (and others) to acquire the right pieces to finally push the Raptors over the hump.
Ditching DeMar: Why DeRozan Has To Go
Basketball is a beautiful game but a brutal business. There are always hard situations where a team has to part ways with a beloved player and the Raptors are no strangers to this.
Vince Carter, Chris Bosh, and others left the team at the height of their powers and DeRozan could be next.
The four-time All-Star has arguably been the greatest Raptor even over Carter. He was the key piece to a team that achieved multiple 50-win seasons and reached the Conference Finals.
DeRozan even talked about being a Raptor for life and has worked hard to take his game to the new level. He’s grown a lot from simply being a slasher to one of the best all-around scorers within 15 feet.
And that’s exactly why he has to go along with a laundry list of flaws for a “superstar”.
DeRozan can’t shoot threes and his short-range game is too limited to be effective especially during the playoffs.
During the Cavaliers series, DeRozan averaged just 16.7 points with a team-worst plus/minus rating for the last three games.
He played so badly in game three he was benched and in game four he was thrown out for a flagrant foul.
DeRozan is also a porous defender and doesn’t dominate a game the way higher-level superstars do.
In short, DeRozan could be nothing more than a scorer and, at $27 million a year, that’s not enough.
If the Raptors can find a trading partner, any combination of draft picks, three-point shooters, and solid defenders would make for a solid package in exchange for DeRozan.
Lowry Leaves When DeRozan Leaves
If the Raptors ship out DeRozan, it’s almost guaranteed Lowry would want out too.
DeRozan openly said he would want out if the Raptors traded Lowry and the same could be true thanks to their brotherly bond.
While Lowry isn’t as big of a liability to the team because he can play defence and isn’t entirely ineffective without the ball in his hands, he still couldn’t make a difference when it mattered most.
Lowry averaged 17.4 points on 50.8 per cent shooting during the playoffs to go along with 8.5 assists and 4.3 rebounds.
His $31 million a year is tough to sell but he only has two years left beginning next season and has more trade value than DeRozan.
The All-Star point guard will be a tremendous boost to a fringe playoff team looking for help at the five-spot.
Teams like the Detroit Pistons and Denver Nuggets, who just missed out on the playoffs, could use Lowry’s skills.
The departure of Lowry would then require Toronto to re-sign backup point guard Fred VanVleet who essentially is an understudy to Lowry. Delon Wright will remain as a backup.
VanVleet will be a downgrade from Lowry but will be cheaper and have more of a ceiling to grow.
Raptors v2.0
Depending what Toronto gets for Lowry and DeRozan (preferably no long-term bloated contracts), freeing themselves of their contracts puts them in a situation similar to the Boston Celtics.
They will both be a playoff contender and a rebuilding team thanks to their core being mostly guys 25-years-old and younger.
If the Raptors need to part with other players to deal DeRozan or Lowry, so be it.
But they should hold on to the likes of OG Anunoby, Wright, and VanVleet and have a semblance of the team Casey has developed.
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Replacing Lowry and DeRozan, eight All-Star appearances between them, combined with the improvement of the Celtics and Sixers in the division, will make it tougher for Toronto to contend again.
As the Raptors showed during the regular season, this is a team that is youthful, athletic and has plenty of depth.
Most importantly, they remain guided by an underappreciated coach who has been nothing but an invaluable mentor to the progress of their young players.