The Toronto Raptors are on the verge of making a huge trade that fundamentally changes how the roster looks. The team’s current alignment is clearly not making the team much more successful, so the Raptors may move off one of their starters in order to get some extra depth.
Be it Gary Trent Jr, Fred VanVleet, or another name of some significance that ends up being thrown into the rumor mill, Masai Ujiri is likely going to be open for business in the next few weeks. When prioritizing return packages, the goal should be controllable young scorers.
The league is full of contenders who could take Toronto up on its offer. With plenty of quality rotation players who may be squeezed out of a stretch role or won’t be able to nail down a consistent part due to the presence of more talented players, Toronto will not be short on trade targets to eyeball.
If the Raptors come out of this trade season with one of these three players on the team, they could chalk this up as a success. The team needs to get younger and more dynamic, and adding one of this young trio will help achieve that goal relatively quickly.
3 young scorers the Toronto Raptors could trade for.
3. Bones Hyland, PG, Denver Nuggets
Hyland has been Denver’s chief bench standout this season, but it will be hard for Denver to keep him long-term in that role. With the presence of Jamal Murray and the fact that Hyland is the fifth option, at best, Hyland might be a high-end target for Toronto.
Hyland is averaging 13.5 points this season while making 41% of his 3-pointers. While his namesake nickname is due to a skinny frame that will make him a below-average finisher at the rim, he would give them a boost of electricity that the bench is clearly lacking right now.
Bones Hyland could be the point guard the Toronto Raptors need.
Hyland will join a Raptors bench that needs to pull teeth to score 10 points every night, so any sort of young player that can come in and be dynamic will be worth the price of their respective acquisitions. If Toronto can put some meat on those Bones, Hyland would be a long-term Sixth Man with more responsibility than he’d have in Denver.
Denver needs to capitalize on Nikola Jokic’s prime, as they will risk potentially wasting three MVP seasons in a row without getting to the Finals at a time when the West has been weaker than ever before. Giving up Hyland for a Raptors starter would be a bold move, but it might be the genesis of a win-win deal.
2. Trey Murphy III, New Orleans Pelicans
While Murphy has emerged as a player who regularly starts for a contending Pelicans team, they could easily be willing to move the 6-9 guard/forward hybrid along with some draft capital in exchange for a game-changer that can slide into the rotation. Murphy seems like an ideal Raptors player from a physical standpoint.
Murphy is averaging 12.7 points per game while just making just under 42% of his 3-pointers. With the Raptors now the worst team in the league in terms of 3-point percentage, any young player that can come in and stroke it is going to be a valuable asset.
The Toronto Raptors need a shooter like Trey Murphy III.
The Raptors will likely remake the roster, but there is no indication that the Ujiri regime is going to upend their switchable scheme completely. If they’re sticking with this philosophy, Murphy’s height and energy will make him a perimeter piece worth developing for Toronto.
New Orleans’ Anthony Davis trade windfall gives them more assets to trade than most contenders. If they add one of the Raptors’ starters to the lineup at the expense of a package headlined by Murphy and multiple first-round picks, both franchises could be better positioned for a future run.
1. Cole Anthony, Orlando Magic
Anthony is not going to have a long-term future in Orlando. Not only are Jalen Suggs and Paolo Banchero coming into their own, but the Magic will likely have two Top 10 picks in the NBA Draft to further stock their cupboards. Anthony’s numbers are slipping, but Toronto could get them back up.
Anthony’s scoring may have fallen from 16.3 per game to just 12.1 after the addition of Banchero, but his efficiency has ticked upward slightly. With his ability to leap and attack the basket while creating for himself in an environment that lacked offensive talent around him, Anthony could take off.
Cole Anthony could help the Toronto Raptors’ bench.
Anthony being in charge of the bench could help the Raptors get the production they have been begging Malachi Flynn to provide. From a scoring perspective, Anthony isn’t a tremendous 3-point shooter, but he will have very few equals on this team in terms of finishing inside.
Anthony is too talented to be relegated to Orlando’s third point guard role. With Fred VanVleet’s status completely up in the air, Anthony might be able to potentially be the short-term starter if they choose not to make Scottie Barnes the primary ball-handler.