The Toronto Raptors are a below .500 team after the first month of the season, but are they better than their record insists?
After starting 2-8, the team rallied back to a respectable 7-11 record and are narrowly out of a playoff spot. Although they’re currently sitting on the outside looking in, there’s still plenty of optimism around the Raptors as they push for the postseason.
Making the playoffs is an accomplishment for some franchises, but it’s mandatory for the Raptors, at least in the last few years. You couldn’t make that comment as little as six years ago, but Toronto is now one of the most consistent teams in the NBA. Year after year, this team continues to make the playoffs and is expected to win.
With the Philadelphia 76ers, Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets and Milwaukee Bucks favored to win the Eastern Conference this year, what should the Raptors do moving forward? Knowing they’ll likely face one of these four teams, Toronto needs to make some changes to compete with the big boys.
The Toronto Raptors need to make these four changes after a rough first quarter
4. Upgrade the centre position
The Aron Baynes signing looked promising but it’s not a fit, as he’s providing minimal offensive and defensive production when he’s on the floor. The departure of Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka looks worse with each passing day. With the young core of Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam ready for a huge campaign, the fact that Baynes is asked to do so much on offense is somewhat puzzling.
With a ton of money connected to their backcourt, the Raptors don’t have a ton to spend on their frontcourt, so it gets tricky on who they could acquire. If money’s coming in, it’ll most likely have to come out. Clint Capela, currently on the Atlanta Hawks, makes a ton of sense given how the roster is constructed.
Capela had a 27 point, 26 rebound night just a few days ago. Although Capela offers little outside of the paint on the offensive end, he’d make for a great fit on this roster and his contract is reasonable.
No one knows what route the Raptors are going to go, but whatever they do, they need to upgrade the position one way or another, as Baynes’ limited production is simply not good enough for a starting center.
3. Let Chris Boucher Start
Keeping Boucher on the bench to maximize his potential makes a ton of sense, but it may be time to see what he can do as a starter.
Having Boucher on the bench is great for a few reasons. First, he’ll continue to play against the second-unit and should be able to score and defend better against them. Second, it limits his minutes. Nurse appears to be limited how much time he gets on the floor, as he’s never averaged more than 13 minutes per night in an NBA season prior to this year.
However, with this team on the outside of the playoff picture, why not see what you have with Boucher in the starting line-up?
Boucher signed a two-year contract worth roughly $7 million per season, and he will be a free agent after the 2021-22 season. As a result, the Raptors don’t have much time to decide whether or not they should keep him long-term or trade him. In order for the team to get the most out of their asset, it would be good to see what he can do as a starter.
If Boucher outperforms his contract, he could be a steal as their starting centre and the team won’t have to trade or sign someone to replace Baynes. If it turns out he can’t be the reliable starting centre, then the Raptors can look to find one via free agency or trade instead.
2. Trade Norman Powell
In a perfect world, the Raptors would keep Powell and have him as a reliable bench player, but his price-tag rises with each passing game. Instead of keeping him until he becomes a free agent, Toronto should trade him to get the most out of his contract.
Over the past two seasons, Powell has averaged 16.0 and 13.9 points per game. That is stellar production for someone averaging around 25 minutes per night. Powell definitely has some heat-check moments in him, as he has topped 20 points per game five times this season. However, based on how this team is structured, they could use his $11 million per season to upgrade their starting roster.
The team is already set with VanVleet, Siakam and OG Anunoby, who has really impressed over the last few weeks, for the next few seasons, but could use Powell’s salary to attract another superstar player to join them. Powell is a good player off the bench, but his star potential is lacking given his streaky play.
Powell is the type of player that could be a starter on a bottom-feeder in the NBA, but is best suited as the seventh or eighth-best guy on a contender. Raptors fans know all about that, as if it wasn’t for a few big games by him against the Bucks in the 2018 championship run as a key reserve, Toronto might not have made it to the Finals.
It’s not going to happen every night, but Powell can provide great production and depth on a good NBA roster. The Raptors should use this opportunity to ship him out for a draft pick because he’s most likely going to cost too much to sign in a year.
1. Trade Kyle Lowry
Kyle Lowry is the greatest player in Toronto Raptors history and that won’t change anytime soon. As a result, the team owes him the right to finish his career with a contender.
Raptors fans will certainly be upset if Lowry finished his career with another team, but he’s accomplished more for this city than anyone expected. If the team is able to get an asset in return for him, they need to do it immediately, because he may not even return in free agency.
It would make perfect sense for Lowry to return home and play for the Philadelphia 76ers. They’re currently one of the best teams in the NBA, and have a real shot at making the NBA Finals. By adding Lowry, it would only reinforce their status as an elite team.
76ers executive Darryl Morey is already familiar with Lowry and understands what he can bring to a team. Morey may have been the one that shipped him out of Houston, but he was the person who got him there in the first place.
Lowry makes $30M per season and will probably ask for the same amount next year. At that price-tag, it probably makes sense to move on. I’m sure Lowry would love to play in his hometown and compete for another championship, so after the 76ers missed out on James Harden already, you’d think they’d give up a few assets to get a warrior like Lowry in the line-up.