3 reasons Raptors clearly won Jakob Poeltl trade with Spurs

3. Dumping Khem Birch’s contract

After getting bought out by the Magic after years as a garden-variety backup big man, Birch ended up returning to his homeland and signing with the Raptors in the Tampa bubble. After averaging 11.9 points per game, Birch signed a massive three-year contract worth over $20 million.

Birch wasted no time proving that Toronto was foolish for giving him that deal. He fell out of the rotation early in his first full season with the team, and his appearances in 2022-23 have been limited to spot duty or mop-up chances when the outcome of the game has been determined.

The Toronto Raptors got rid of Khem Birch.

While $7 million per season may not sound like an outrageous financial burden to avoid, a Raptors ownership group that is often very hesitant about going into the luxury tax will love every bit of financial wiggle room they can get. Birch will likely get bought out by a Spurs team prioritizing youth.

While Birch likely brought something to the locker room, serving as a veteran voice on a young team with players like Koloko who are still growing, holding onto him didn’t make any sense from a basketball point of view. Toronto did well to offload him and give him a chance to set himself up for success in a new location, wherever that is.