4 Toronto Raptors who are playing for their future in Canada
By Mike Luciano
2. Gary Trent Jr.
Much like nearly everyone on this Raptors roster, you never know what you’re going to get on a given night. Trent can score like Ray Allen one night and Lavoy Allen the next. Having already been demoted to the bench for the second time this season, Trent may not be in Toronto’s long-term plans.
The anti-Trent camp will point out the fact that clunkers like his Los Angeles road trip showings can be fairly commonplace and will propose that paying a Sixth Man elite money is ridiculous. The pro-Trent side, however, will put forth the notion that this team is woefully unprepared to compete without Trent’s skillset. No draft replacement can match that.
Will the Toronto Raptors retain Gary Trent Jr. in 2023-24?
Trent is going to ask for a contract that will likely reach into nine figures. With Pascal Siakam able to get paid after the 2023-24 season, Jakob Poeltl likely being retained for a somewhat similar price, and Scottie Barnes likely being in line for a payday, Toronto might be hesitant to pay Trent.
Trent needs to spend the next chunk of games showing that his ability to shoot and create is irreplaceable on a Raptors team that is going to struggle to find replacements for him on a fairly modest budget.