Raptors: 3 NBA Draft prospects worth trading into the lottery for

The Toronto Raptors don’t have tons of draft capital to work with in the 2022 NBA Draft, as the Thad Young trade saw them part with a first-round pick while getting back the No. 33 overall selection. However, rumors of a trade-up continue to persist around Masai Ujiri’s camp.

With teams like the Kings and Portland Trail Blazers reportedly shopping their Top 10 picks and the Raptors interviewing top prospects like Bennedict Mathurin, the idea of Toronto shaking the league to its’ core with a trade can’t be ruled out as a distinct possibility.

The Raptors wouldn’t make this move up unless they zeroed in on one or two players that would be no-doubt home runs. Even though this draft is widely regarded to fall off of a cliff talent-wise after the consensus top three prospects, plenty of future All-Stars will come off the board in the lottery.

These three players are so talented that Ujiri might be willing to throw caution to the wing and use his future assets to move back into the lottery. All three should be instant starters on a Raptors team that has eyes on the postseason in the immediate future.

3 2022 NBA Draft prospects the Toronto Raptors could trade up for.

3. Ochai Agbaji, Kansas

Agbaji was the unquestioned best player on a Jayhawks team that won the national championship in 2021-22. Averaging 18.8 points per game on 47/41/74 shooting splits shows that Agbaji is a unique scorer who should have no trouble adapting to a role in the pros.

A four-year contributor, Agbaji improved from an 8.5 points per game scorer to a legitimate lead dog on a title-winning squad. With his shooting firmly in the elite tier and his leaping ability far above that of other top guards, Agbaji should not fall out of the lottery after his dominant final season.

Ochai Agbaji could be a perfect Toronto Raptors bench star.

With some poor ball-handling and questionable playmaking skills despite years of experience in college, Agbaji is likely going to be suited to a 3-and-D role in the pros. This may put a hard cap on his offensive ceiling and turn away potential teams interested in him.

If a team in the bottom half of the lottery is willing to move off of their pick, Toronto could grab that selection and end up with Agbaji. Toronto won’t have to fork over tons of future assets to the point where they’re irreparably handicapped. Agbaji could be a Sixth Man of the Year candidate.