You play GM: Decide the fate of the Toronto Raptors offseason
Kawhi Leaves
Losing Kawhi Leonard is a sizeable hit to the Raptors future. He’s the best player on the team and a top-10 talent. Letting him walk for nothing will be difficult.
But Masai Ujiri and company knew this was a possibility when they acquired him. He wouldn’t have been available if it weren’t for his impending free agency, and he certainly wouldn’t have been available for DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl and a first-round pick.
Toronto took their shot, and as a result, are NBA Champions. Flags fly forever and the Toronto Raptors would obviously do the trade 10 out of 10 times, even if they 100-percent knew Kawhi was a rental.
With Kawhi gone, Toronto has two options. They can attempt to re-tool and stay competitive or they can rebuild, acknowledging the end of an era.
Continue to contend
Without Leonard, the Raptors can still return a talented team built around Pascal Siakam and Kyle Lowry. Marc Gasol will almost certainly be opting into his $25 million player option, and the team has “bird rights” on Danny Green, meaning they won’t have any restrictions re-signing him from a cap perspective.
Toronto was 17-5 without Kawhi this season, and even with him in L.A., the Raptors have the juice to be at least a 4 or 5 seed in a top-heavy Eastern Conference. Make the right moves around the margins, and who knows what they might accomplish.
Choose to stay in contention despite Kawhi Leonard’s departure.
Time to rebuild
Let’s face it. The Toronto Raptors aren’t good enough to win a title without Kawhi Leonard. It was a great run, but there is no sense in competing for the 5th seed.
Toronto needs to rebuild. Whether it’s a full-scale teardown or a quick dip into the lower half of the league, it’s time to recognize this team just doesn’t have what it takes to be a legitimate contender at this point in time.
Let some players walk, trade a few older pieces, and move into the future with a legitimate rebuild.