Toronto Raptors: Trading for Dejounte Murray or Derrick White will be hard

Bobby Webster and the Toronto Raptors are looking for any and every potential option at point guard considering that Kyle Lowry appears to potentially be laying the groundwork for an exit. Did the San Antonio Spurs accidentally throw them a lifeline due to some rumors surrounding Dejounte Murray and Derrick White?

Zach Harper of The Athletic hinted that the duo could be “gettable” in the offseason in his latest NBA Mock Draft. With White coming off of a career year scoring the ball and Murray proving that he is one of the best all-around young guards in the league, this move would certainly come off as a bit of a shock for San Antonio.

The Raptors, should they find enough flaws in some of the young prospects available at pick No. 4 in the 2021 NBA Draft, could they really go for broke and try to trade for someone like Murray or White, who should contribute right away?

In a perfect world, San Antonio could blow it up and trade one of these two versatile standouts to Toronto. However, the Raptors don’t have a ton of tradeable assets that could entice the Spurs to part with them, and that could make it tough for the front office to pilfer one of these two.

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The Toronto Raptors may be unable to get Dejounte Murray or Derrick White.

Murray and White both theoretically fit the mold of Raptors point guards, as they can play crunching defense, contribute on offense without high-volume scoring nights, and take turns handling the ball. However, the Raptors may not have enough assets to entice San Antonio into parting with either of them.

Both Murray and White are scheduled to make over $15 million next year. Short of trading Fred VanVleet or OG Anunoby, a move that would be so counterproductive that it doesn’t even deserve to be dignified with a response, the only way they could match that salary is to make Aron Baynes and Rodney Hood’s contracts guaranteed and ship them to San Antonio.

Obviously, those two will not provide adequate value. Murray could give the Raptors a whole new dimension on the offensive end due to his rebounding and interior scoring, but they have a chance to draft a very similar player in Jalen Suggs. White is solid, but the Raptors could lean on signing someone like Gary Trent Jr. in restricted free agency.

The Raptors have already taken one star away from San Antonio, and RC Buford likely isn’t ready to give away some of his younger players as the Spurs try to build for the post-Gregg Popovich era. Any Raptors fans banking on a Murray trade shouldn’t hold their breath considering all of the hoops Toronto would need to jump through.