The Toronto Raptors made waves early in the offseason thanks to their pursuit of Kevin Durant. Even though such a trade would be borderline unprecedented across NBA history, the Raptors are still hanging around the KD sweepstakes thanks to a stockpile of assets they have accumulated.
In addition to a heap of draft picks, the Raptors would likely have to part ways with names like OG Anunoby and Gary Trent Jr. to get Durant to Toronto. The Nets have reportedly asked for Scottie Barnes to sweeten the package, but the Raptors have rebuked them to this point.
With Toronto inflexible in this regard, the Raptors’ odds of getting Durant in a trade might not be as strong as they were a few weeks ago. While some might see failing to acquire a player of Durant’s caliber as a huge loss, Toronto might not be as down in the dumps as most teams.
The Raptors and their fanbase shouldn’t stay up at night crying their eyes out about the potential of losing Durant. Toronto has all of the ingredients needed for a very deep playoff run, even if Durant stays in Brooklyn due to an inability to find a trade partner.
Toronto Raptors: 3 reasons to stay calm if they don’t get Kevin Durant
3. Brooklyn’s asking price is too high
The Nets insisting on Barnes will probably lead to a stoppage in negotiations. The Nets have reportedly been asking for such a ridiculously generous package for Durant that it would actually cripple the team who acquires him to an insane degree.
The Timberwolves were reportedly poking around the Durant patch before the Rudy Gobert deal, but the move collapsed when Brooklyn reportedly wanted both Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns. If that wasn’t enough, Toronto might not get there without including Barnes or Pascal Siakam.
The Nets might not trade Kevin Durant to the Raptors.
Giving up 3/5 of a starting lineup that won 48 games in addition to control of their draft for most of the next decade is going to be a huge bar for Toronto to clear. That is an awful lot to give up for one player, as Brooklyn found out when they traded their youngsters for James Harden.
While Durant appears to have a game that will age more gracefully than Harden, the Raptors don’t need to feel pressured into getting a deal done. Giving into the Nets’ demands may end up setting the Raptors back while putting a nitro booster on Brooklyn’s retooling.
2. Issues with Durant
While it may seem like a no-brainer to acquire Durant considering his scoring skill and pedigree within the league, there are reasons that Toronto is unwilling to throw Barnes into the mix. The Durant they are looking to acquire might not be as impregnable and dominant as he was earlier in his career.
Durant signed a four-year extension with Brooklyn that will help him get paid $53 million at age 37. That contract has barely started, and he’s already asked out. What’s to say that he won’t do it again? His reliability has to be called into question ever so slightly after this move.
Kevin Durant might not be perfect for the Toronto Raptors.
Durant is beyond reproach as a basketball talent, but he is still 33 years old and fresh off missing more games than he’s played during the last three seasons. The Raptors had the backups needed to make up for Kawhi Leonard missing time, but they would need to gut the roster to bring on KD.
The Raptors are a team that is willing to take risks, but there are aspects about Durant as an asset that might make him less attractive. An oft-injured, aging player that will take up most of the salary cap could give Masai Ujiri and Bobby Webster some pause for thought.
1. The Raptors’ roster is just fine
Part of the reason that Toronto can sit back and play the waiting game is the fact that they have unlimited confidence in their roster and the ability to build a winner without Durant. They are in no such mood to get desperate and fork over all those assets for KD.
The Raptors are led by a Rookie of the Year in Scottie Barnes, an All-Star point guard in Fred VanVleet, and an All-NBA forward in Pascal Siakam. With Anunoby and Trent rounding out the top five, that lineup could be good enough to make some noise in the East.
The Toronto Raptors could succeed without Kevin Durant.
Toronto is not dealing from a position of panic. They can come right in with their old starting five and much-improved bench and end up earning a playoff spot without getting stuck in the play-in. Considering how young they are, Toronto might do well to stay with their current configuration.
Trading for Durant would mean that the Raptors would abandon their year-long plan to rebuild through the draft and build everything around Durant (who is riskier than most might assume). Keeping the current lineup is by no means a bad choice.