Toronto Raptors: 3 former players who should return via trade

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TORONTO, ON – APRIL 24: P.J. Tucker #2 of the Toronto Raptors (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images) /

No. 1: P.J. Tucker

If the Toronto Raptors were to acquire Tucker, he’d be the only player in team history to ever play for them on three different occasions, and his presence would be adored right now. Even at 35 years old, Tucker has started every game for the Houston Rockets this year and still one of the better defensive players in the league.

Tucker isn’t going to provide much offense, but he’s going to give you everything he has on the defensive end. When he joined the Raptors during the 2016-17 season, he was a big help for their team, but they were never going to get past LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the playoffs.

Does Tucker have enough left in the tank?

Toronto has a veteran leader in Kyle Lowry, but a new voice would be ideal for their defense. The Raptors have always been a team that has relied on team-defense, but they currently sit 17th in the NBA in defensive rating. Although he’s only 6-foot-5, Tucker could really help improve that number if he was in the starting line-up every night.

By having a starting line-up of Lowry, VanVleet, OG Anunoby, Tucker and Pascal Siakam, it would make sure that Aron Baynes’ minutes were limited and it would help overall team defense. The Raptors are seventh in the NBA in offensive rating, so clearly they can score. However, they need to tighten their defense in order to give themselves a better chance at winning every night.

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With one year left on his contract at $7.9M, the Rockets aren’t winning the NBA Championship with or without him, so Tucker could be an easy acquisition for not much in return.