Toronto Raptors point guard target No. 1: Isaiah Thomas
Watching Thomas go from the last pick in the draft as a 5-9 point guard to one of the best players in the NBA to unable to get any team to take a chance on him has been downright heartbreaking. After being drafted by and becoming a stud in Sacramento, Thomas almost won a scoring title with the Boston Celtics before injuries and the trade to Cleveland derailed his career.
Thomas averaged 24.7 points per game in three seasons with the Celtics, including 28.9 in 2016-17, but it’s been rough-sledding since. Ever since the start of the 2017 season, Thomas has played in just 84 games, averaging just 12.8 points per game. Given his injury history and minimal defensive production, Thomas has been out of work all year long.
He’d be the riskiest potential addition of the three, but he would have the highest ceiling. Even when he was playing on a bad Wizards team last year, where he averaged 12.2 points and 3.7 assists per game, there were glimpses of the old IT showing up.
While he won’t be a great defender, Nurse is always on the lookout for more shooters, and Thomas can still get to the rim and stroke it from deep. Thomas signing with Toronto, one of Boston’s biggest rivals, and helping lead them to the playoffs at the expense of his old team is a fairytale story that sounds like it came straight out of Hollywood.