The Toronto Raptors were, at one point, 16-15 and in-line to host a playoff series. However, due to injuries, the NBA’s health and safety protocols, and plain old bad luck, the Raptors have lost six of their last seven games, which has knocked them out of the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference.
While the loss of Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, and Fred VanVleet for the last few games can be taken as a sign that the Raptors, who are have been one or two unlucky bounces away from a .500 record.
Still, with five players out for the foreseeable future, Toronto could slip out of the playoffs and into the lottery. They’re not in a position where they can give away some reserves at the trade deadline, as their lack of draft capital and what could be a precarious 2021 offseason staring them in the face could complicate things.
After Toronto looked ready to go for it in traditional Masai Ujiri fashion, could they actually reverse course and end up selling at the deadline?
The Toronto Raptors aren’t well equipped for the future
Being .500, or close to is, is the worst nightmare for any Canadian team. Not only will you miss out on a great draft pick, but free agency would be a complete wasteland.
Not only will Toronto be unable to entice these stars with the potential of playing on a team that could contend for a championship, but they will be unable to tempt stars looking to put up impressive stats on a bad team. If you had your pick of nine-figure free agent offers, would you go to a team trying to win a title, or freeze your butt off on a .500 team in Toronto?
The Raptors don’t have a second-round pick in either of the next two seasons, and their first-round picks are also likely to be in the doldrums. This means that they’re not Top 10 picks that can be used to draft a game-changing player, nor are they in the range where they could trade their picks away given the somewhat random nature of the later parts of the draft.
What happens if Lowry and Powell leave? Who is going to come to Toronto and replace them. They will either take on a bunch of salary dumps to hit the cap floor or overpay for free agents, both of which aren’t ideal.
The Toronto Raptors could sell stars and get draft picks
Kyle Lowry might be pushing 35, but he is still a quality starting point guard in this league. Based on the hypothetical offers that have been tossed around regarding him he could still fetch quite a pretty penny via trade. Powell has been averaging 23.5 points per game on 52% shooting over the last seven weeks, showing how lethal he can be when he gets hot.
He’ll fetch quite a lot in return.
The Raptors might be on the tail end of a comet, as even making the play-in tournament isn’t a sign that this team is ready to win and win now. Selling off these players for spare parts might be the only way forward if Ujiri wants to set Toronto up nicely for the future.