Toronto Raptors: Play of Gary Trent Jr. is creating a financial issue

Gary Trent Jr. is creating the very financial crunch that the Toronto Raptors management seemingly were trying to avoid by trading for him and Rodney Hood. Since he’s joined the Raptors, Trent has been good. Very good.

He is shooting 39 percent on the three-ball and is averaging 17.9 points per game since joining Toronto. Saturday night vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers, Trent led Toronto to a dominant win 135-115 in one of the most efficient 40 point games in NBA history.

He dropped 44 points effortlessly and in the game’s natural flow on 17-19 shooting, and he was 7-9 on three-pointers. His shooting percentage for the night was 89.4. Normally, players who score upwards of 40 points are also volume shooters.

His performance against the Cavaliers was the Raptors’ second high-efficiency shooting game by a Raptor this season, as Fred VanVleet shot 17-23 while going 11-14 on 3-pointers for 54 points on February 2.

Both Trent and VanVleet’s best sharpshooting moments of this season were also their career-best point tallies in a single game. In nine games as a Raptor, Trent has three plus 20 point games now, including a 31 point performance against the Oklahoma City Thunder on March 31st.

He has also been a solid defender who was a + 54 in a 53 point victory over the Golden State Warriors recently and was a +31 Saturday night.

Why the Toronto Raptors got Gary Trent Jr.

The management of the Raptors has been clear about one thing this season. By their actions, Masai Ujiri and Bobby Webster appear dedicated to saving salary cap space for the summer of 2021. There are only six players with guaranteed contracts beyond this season, not including the team option on Aron Baynes. Kyle Lowry is also off the books this summer as well.

The deal, acquiring Hood (non-guaranteed deal for next season) and a restricted free agent this summer in Trent for Norman Powell, seemed like an obvious way to avoid Powell opting out of his contract and triggering a bidding war for his services that the Raptors would likely have to enter at around the $20 million range to retain him.

Therefore, the restricted free agent status of Trent and his potential were an adequate substitute for Powell both on the court and financially. Trent is meant to replace Powell, but he may be exceeding expectations too soon.

Why was Gary Trent even available?

Seeing is believing, and it’s clear Trent is talented. The main reason the Portland Trail Blazers may not have offered an extension is their depth chart. With Damian Lillard as a premier perimeter player/guard, it was hard to find Trent minutes.

Further, sitting sixth in the West Powell provides Portland with another dominant scorer who is a former champion and battle-tested  NBA Playoffs performer for a team that was a Western Conference Finalist just two seasons ago.

In that series vs. the Golden State Warriors, Portland held second-half double-digit leads in multiple games, which they subsequently blew, losing the matchup.

Powell, in their eyes, is the missing piece that gets them over the hump, while Trent, who finally feels “wanted” in Toronto, had to be jettisoned.

The implications of Trent’s continued great play for Toronto

It must have felt like a gut punch for the Raptors’ fanbase when news came at the trade deadline that fan-favorite Norman Powell was dealt to Portland, especially since Powell was having an outstanding season.

With Powell’s stellar play, he wasn’t the issue this year, and the returns of Hood and Trent did not address the obvious frontcourt needs the team has. Still, to secure cap space for a potential flurry of off-season player transactions to remake the roster, Powell’s opt-out clause was a sore point.

So a restricted free agent with a ceiling potentially higher than Powell’s like Trent who’s salary is only $1.6 million now, could reasonably be raised to slightly more than the four-year $42 million deal Powell signed back in 2017.

Trent may be worth significantly more than that and could attract bidders this off-season irrespective of the restricted free agent status. It is not unheard of for an opposing general manager to block a divisional or conference rival from maximizing their cap space by forcing them to blow it on one player.

Toronto’s former general manager Bryan Colangelo once offered a deal to RFA Landry Fields in a failed effort to force the Knicks into matching and not being able to compete for  Steve Nash. Toronto may be forced to pay Trent more than they need to.

In Trent’s case, he is obviously a talent worth securing. A recent example of where Trent may fit on the salary scale is to examine the debacle that occurred this past November in the Bogdan Bogdanovic signing.

After Sacramento and Milwaukee butchered his sign and trade by announcing it before free agency began, he signed with the Atlanta Hawks for four years and $72 million. He is averaging 12.6 points per game and shooting 39.2 percent on three-pointers.

Three and D players are pricey and in demand in today’s NBA, and the Raptors may still have an unwanted bidding war on their hands even though they can match any offer presented to Trent.

The trouble will come in justifying Powell’s trade for a veteran guard in Hood whose salary is not likely to be guaranteed next season and an RFA in Trent that Raptors management may not be able to keep.