While the Toronto Raptors could take calls on most of their roster now that trade season has been kicked into high gear, the two players who make the most sense as trade chips are Gary Trent Jr. and Fred VanVleet. Toronto can net multiple premium picks in exchange for them.
While VanVleet is an All-Star point guard, even his biggest supporters will find it very hard to deny that he is regressing this season. Trent is a fantastic player, but rumors about the contract he is going to demand might force Masai Ujiri to consider moving away from him.
Trading both of them might be too steep of a challenge for this Raptors team, but fans should brace for at least one of them to be wearing a different jersey in the relatively near future. Fans might be on board with trading VanVleet, but Trent might be the more likely move of the two.
However, if Ujiri wants to keep this team as competitive as possible for 2023 and beyond, the front office needs to be more aggressive in pursuing a VanVleet trade than dealing Trent. These three justifications prove that a VanVleet deal should be put on the front burner.
3 reasons the Toronto Raptors should trade Fred VanVleet.
3. Financial implications
The Raptors will have to give these guys a ton of money in the offseason, as they have both vastly outperformed their current contracts. Trent averaging over 18 points per game with solid 3-point shooting and 1.8 steals per contest will be what pushed him closer to a nine-figure contract worth $25 million per season.
While VanVleet was quick to shoot down rumors that he didn’t accept Toronto’s initial multi-year contract offer, it’s not unreasonable to assume that VanVleet (who just fired his agent) is seeking a deal similar to the $130 million payday Tyler Herro got in Miami. MLSE will love saving $30 million by paying a younger player.
Gary Trent Jr. will cost the Toronto Raptors less than Fred VanVleet.
With Pascal Siakam potentially in supermax contract territory due to his All-NBA performance this season, every dollar Toronto can save and used to build their depth will be appreciated. If they can also use the remaining money to hold on to a tremendous perimeter scorer that keeps getting better, that makes this decision even sweeter.
VanVleet already cashed in with the Raptors, signing the biggest contract for an undrafted player in NBA history. His next contract, however, might be too expensive for a Raptors team that can’t afford to commit so much money to just a handful of players.
2. Efficiency
While VanVleet has really turned it on of late, he is in danger of shooting under 40% from the field for the second time in the last three seasons. With a fairly high usage rate for a point guard of his stature, Toronto’s offense devolved into VanVleet chucking 3-pointers from two counties away far too often.
Trent, meanwhile, is shooting just under 45% from the field, making more than 50% of his shots inside the arc for the first time in his career. Trent is making just under 38% of his 3-pointers as a Raptor, giving the team one true sniper from deep in a league that values shooting more than ever.
The Toronto Raptors need Gary Trent Jr. to shoot.
The package that Toronto could get for VanVleet could help the Raptors nab a collection of guards that can stroke it from deep. Surrounding your heliocentric star with an armada of shooters has been a strategy that has worked well of late in both the regular and postseason.
Efficiency is not going to increase as VanVleet starts to get a little long in the tooth, meaning that there is a very high likelihood that Toronto has already milked the best individual seasons out of No. 23. Trent, meanwhile, has his best scoring and shooting seasons in the windshield.
1. Fit with Scottie Barnes
Every move the Raptors make in the next few years is going to be centered around how to get the most out of Barnes. With each passing week, Barnes is starting to show more flashes of the franchise pillar everyone hopes he will become.
While VanVleet and Barnes can work together, sending him elsewhere could be what allows Barnes to dominate the ball more and dig into his true potential. He’s had success directing the offense as a point center over the last few weeks, so why not lean into that?
Toronto Raptors: Gary Trent Jr. fits with Scottie Barnes.
While it remains to be seen if Barnes will ever be as good as Pascal Siakam, the two certainly share similar skillsets. Both of them have the passing chops needed to be the primary offensive ignitor, and Trent would help the Raptors’ offense more in a complementary role than VanVleet would.
Where Trent has the edge over VanVleet on the floor is the fact that he doesn’t need the ball in his hands to make an offensive impact. This will be Siakam and Barnes’ team, and trading away VanVleet could help rip the Band-Aid off and turn the page on that era of Raptors basketball.