What will the ideal Raptors rotation look like when everyone is healthy?

Bigs

• Pascal Siakam: 30 minutes
• Khem Birch: 18 minutes
• Precious Achiuwa: 15 minutes
• Chris Boucher: 0 minutes

Siakam might be a lightning rod for criticism, but he’s a damn fine player on both ends and by far the best big man on this team. The Raptors need to make room in the rotation for Birch, as his ability to defend the rim provides a nice counterpart to a smaller, more athletic player like Siakam.

Achiuwa has started to get into a groove on the offensive end in the last few games, as the Nigerian youngster’s shooting averages have increased whenever he comes off the bench. While still very raw, Achiuwa appears to have put his slump in the past. Those three might not be a very intimidating trio, but they’re the best this team has.

The Toronto Raptors must juggle minutes for three big men.

It’s time to put Boucher on the bench. Becoming a net negative on the offensive end is one thing, but to look completely lost on the defensive end at times and lose all of the shot-blocking skill we saw last year is another. A quarter of the season is in the books, so the time for hoping he magically improves is over.

The lack of a genuine difference-maker outside of Siakam is hurting this team, and they won’t magically fix that error in roster construction over the next handful of games. They just need to hope Siakam remains elite and some of his backups give him support.