Raptors: suddenly short of centers – or is that the plan?
By Brian Boake
With the arrival, maybe, of Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green, the Raptors are suddenly rich in swingmen. There’s a vacuum in the front court, and management needs to fill it.
The ramifications of the Kawhi Leonard trade for the Toronto Raptors run deep and wide. We’ve already spilt a lot of ink (that used to be the term – it’s more and more passe) on this trade, but it’s worth it.
Obviously the top-line talent is grabbing the spotlight, but this time we’re going to shine it elsewhere. Jakob Poeltl, an up and coming center, is off to San Antonio. Lucas (Bebe) Nogueira was not offered a new contract and is currently an Unrestricted Free Agent [UFA].
The only official center remaining is Jonas Valanciunas. Serge Ibaka can certainly step into that role, so the team is not in a crisis. However, there are currently 12 active players under contract, and those two are the last big men.
If the goal of senior executives Masai Ujiri and Bobby Webster was to get in step with the NBA’s pace & space era, they have certainly achieved success. My concern centers (ha, ha) around whether they have succeeded too well.
Until recently, an NBA center’s role was to protect the paint and rebound. If he contributed on offense by being able to score in the low block, or put back a missed shot, so much the better.
Not anymore. In his first five seasons with the Raptors, JV attempted four shots from beyond the 3-point arc. Last season, he hoisted up 74, making 30 (beating his career mark by 29). How’s that for a sea change?
Small is OK – too small isn’t
The Raptors as currently constituted are smaller than I’ve ever seen. Our alleged backup at power forward, Pascal Siakam, doesn’t vaguely resemble past iterations of the position. He’s relatively short, slender, and fleet of foot.
I’m not troubled by lack of size at other positions. The championship teams of the future (and the present!) will be small, quick, and capable of making shots from the parking lot. The Raptors have a plethora of swingmen – we’re fine there.
However, the Achilles heel of teams which emphasize the long ball (meaning everybody) is rebounding. There are a bunch more misses on 25-foot shots than those from 5.
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And the need for rim protection hasn’t gone away with the advent of the long game. DeMar DeRozan completed 42 “and one” opportunities last season, which ranked fifth. Gifted slashers like Russell Westbrook (52 “and ones”) can get 3 points in a way other than shots from outside.
The Raptors as currently constituted need help in the front court. The roster is vulnerable to injury; a twisted ankle suffered by either JV or Serge would ruin our team defense.
Bebe does some things well, but his dreadful playoff performance makes me question the merit of asking him back for another round. I’d like to see training camp invites extended to some of the interesting prospects from the Summer League….Christian Wood, Shevon Thompson (on the 905 roster), Amile Jefferson (though undersized at 6’9″, he led SL with 12.6 rebounds PG). Perhaps we could bring in Cole Aldrich on a veteran’s minimum.
The Raptors should be a strong team, and there will be plenty of “garbage time” minutes to be filled. I don’t want JV or Serge pulling a hamstring as we wrap up a 20-point win.
The weakness up front needs to be recognized, and action taken.