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You play GM: Decide the fate of the Toronto Raptors offseason

By Mike Bossetti

Toronto Raptors - Masai Ujiri (Photo by Ron Turenne/NBAE via Getty Images)
Toronto Raptors - Masai Ujiri (Photo by Ron Turenne/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Wayne Ellington with the MLE

You elected to sign Wayne Ellington with your Mid-Level Exception. Toronto is filled with many great shooting options, Danny Green, Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet, but as we learned last season in the playoffs, shooters can go cold, and you can never have too many.

Wayne Ellington gives the Raptors a deadeye shooter who is capable running off screens and firing triples with even the smallest bit of daylight. He’s available for cheap after a rough year. However, just two years ago, Ellington made 227 threes while shooting 39-percent. If Ellington can find his shot again, he’s a big-time addition.

Assuming Chris Boucher and Malcolm Miller are not cut, that brings the roster to 12 players. The team still needs a third-string center (or some type of post, depending on where you put Boucher) and an additional guard.

It’s reasonable that,  for the time being, the Raptors will enter the season with only 14 players. Their tax bill is already through the roof and the need of their 15th spot would likely be based on injury. That leaves two spots available.

As a contender, Toronto will be able to attract veteran players looking for a ring, more than younger players looking for playing time. As a result, their free-agent pool will look older and better than most.

A couple of possible third-string center options:

  • Kyle O’Quinn
  • Tyson Chandler
  • Joakim Noah
  • Kosta Koufos
  • Eric Moreland

A couple of possible point guard options:

  • Raymond Felton
  • Shelvin Mack
  • Isaiah Thomas
  • Rajon Rondo

For illustrative purposes, let’s move forward with Kosta Koufos and Raymond Felton, but understand you can fill in whoever you’d like.

That means the final roster you’ve chosen is:

  • Point Guard: Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet, Raymond Felton
  • Shooting Guard: Danny Green, Wayne Ellington,
  • Small Forward: Kawhi Leonard, Norman Powell, Malcolm Miller
  • Power forward: Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Chris Boucher
  • Center: Marc Gasol, Serge Ibaka, Kosta Koufos

Not happy with the results? Feel free to start back over.