Raptors: 4 trades with tanking teams that could make Toronto a contender
By Mike Luciano
The Toronto Raptors will be in the market for some upgrades at the 2020-21 NBA Trade Deadline, as they are in need of some depth both inside and outside. Names like Norman Powell and Aron Baynes have been floated as potential trade bait, and a trade might come to fruition in the coming weeks.
While the jam-packed Eastern Conference is making it difficult to figure out who is a contender and who is a pretender, there are still a few teams that are firmly rooted to the bottom of their conference standings, which makes them fertile soil that the Raptors could reap the benefits of this March.
Teams like the Detroit Pistons, Minnesota Timberwolves, and more have been struggling to string wins together, and that could force their front offices to cut their losses, get some picks and players for an inevitable rebuild, and look to the future. Toronto, meanwhile, could get some legitimate depth.
If Masai Ujiri ends up in a very aggressive mood, he could try to swing one of these three trades in order to get the sellers some assets for the future while turning the Raptors into a legitimate contender.
These 4 trades could make the Raptors a contender
Raptors trade No. 1: Toronto gets some scoring from the Detroit Pistons
The Pistons aren’t as desolate as they seem, as they have three first-round pick from this past draft to build around. In addition, Jerami Grant has proven that he was held back on the offensive end in Denver, scoring an automatic 20 points every night. Even with those positive signs, Detroit is still looking to deal.
The Pistons could trade away Wright, who has cracked 10 points per game for the first time in his career, and Jackson, who appears to be performing like a quality NBA rotation player the No. 4 overall pick’s difficult road back to the pros. If Toronto wants to give them short and long-term assets, this deal makes sense.
Why would this trade work for the Raptors?
The Raptors are in need of a point guard to run the second unit and an athletic wing that can attack the rim. Wright is starting to evolve as an offensive player, while Jackson is still the same high-flyer he was at Kansas. Given Nick Nurse’s player development ability, he’ll fix his jump shot in two seconds.
Detroit will get a first-round pick in return, while they can add a solid interior defender in ex-Piston Baynes, another former Piston in Johnson who looks like a slightly more efficient offensive player than he did in the past, and Davis, who could up his scoring average if given a bigger chunk of the scoring load.