The Toronto Raptors free agency plan for the 2021 offseason has to revolve around getting enough depth to fix their disappointing defense from last year. While the Raptors will always be an offensive-minded club under Nick Nurse, stars were able to carve through this defense like a hot knife through butter.
Toronto ranked 15th in defense over the course of the season, but this unit was even worse at the beginning of the season, when a calamitous start ruined whatever chances this team had at a successful season in addition to all of the Tampa-induced weirdness that made this season so difficult.
Luckily, the Raptors could go into the offseason with enough cap space to make something happen on the free-agent market, and there are more than enough quality players out there who could hook up with Toronto on a shorter deal and try to get this squad back to the postseason.
These three veterans would be ideal additions for the Raptors, as they supplement their defensive wizardry with enough of an offensive game to earn a key role in Nurse’s rotation for the 2021-22 campaign.
These 3 free agents could improve the Toronto Raptors on defense
3. SF Nicolas Batum, Los Angeles Clippers
For a period of time, Batum’s name was synonymous with albatross contracts, as he parlayed an impressive stint in Portland into a bloated mess of a deal with the Charlotte Hornets. After averaging 3.6 points per game in the final year of a five-year. $120 million ordeal, Batum found himself again as a role player in Los Angeles.
Not only did Batum score 8.1 points per game and make 40% of his 3-pointers, but the Clippers allowed 3.4 points fewer per 100 possessions when he was on the floor, per Cleaning the Glass (subscription required). If LA decides to retool, the Frenchman could head up to Canada.
Nicolas Batum’s versatility would greatly benefit the Toronto Raptors.
Batum is comfortable on the perimeter despite a 6-8, 230-pound frame, but that body could help him eat up minutes at power forward in a smaller lineup in Toronto. Irrespective of his designation, Batum has proven his quality for the Clippers this season despite having turned 32 before the season.
Even though his offensive game is waning a bit, the Raptors don’t need to bring him in to score as he did with the Trail Blazers. Supplementing the lineup by playing tough defense and switching onto any scorer starting to get hot should be enough of a defined role to warrant Toronto aggressively chasing the UFA this offseason.
2. SG Danny Green, Philadelphia 76ers
Green had a one-year stint with the Raptors after coming over from San Antonio in the Kawhi Leonard deal, and he responded by starting 80 games, scoring 10.3 points per game, making an absurd 45% of his 3-point attempts, and helping Toronto win their first title in franchise history.
Green has since parlayed that season into another ring after signing with the Lakers and a good chance for a third title in a row as a role player in Philadelphia. While Green has been a star in his role for Doc Rivers, the potential to be a quality sixth man off the bench for a coach that knows how to get the most out of him could have appeal.
Don’t write off a return to Toronto just yet.
Danny Green could give the Toronto Raptors tenacity on the perimeter.
Green will provide his usual brand of shooting, but his tough perimeter lockdown ability is a key part of the reason the 76ers have one of the league’s best defenses. Even if Green isn’t the elite stopper he was with the Spurs, he will instantly be one of the better perimeter defenders on this team.
Green will be 34 next season, so age could be a factor in the Raptors potentially choosing to go with a younger option. Green was the 15th-best defensive shooting guard in 2019-20 via real plus-mins, and that could be a very valuable arrow for Nurse and the Raptors to have in their quiver.
1. C Nerlens Noel, New York Knicks
The Knicks’ rise to the ranks of relevancy after years in the dumps was almost entirely because of either the tremendous play of Julius Randle or a defense that suffocating opponents. Noel might’ve come on late after a Mitchell Robinson injury, but he was as effective as any center in the league on defense.
Noel was the only player in the league who averaged 1.0 steals and 2.0 blocks per game this year, as the former No. 1 recruit and No. 6 overall pick showed that his ability to swat away shots and bang down low has not decreased one bit despite age and injury. The Raptors should look into prying him away from their rival.
Nerlens Noel could start at center for the Toronto Raptors.
While Khem Birch was incredibly impressive in his brief cameo with Toronto, he is also a free agent at the end of this season. While Birch offers a bit more of an offensive game outside of the paint when compared to Noel, the former Kentucky star’s acumen on defense could be the driving force that puts him above Birch on Toronto’s priority list.
Noel’s game on offense is a liability at this stage, but Birch didn’t exactly look like a dominant player on that end, and Nurse was able to get the most out of him. If he can work his magic on Noel while letting him secure a paint that was a sore weak spot for Toronto this season, the Raptors may return to the postseason.