3 things the Toronto Raptors must do to get farther next year

The Toronto Raptors were one of the most disappointing teams in the league last season, as their 41 wins and play-in tournament exit seemed a far cry from the 48-win team that earned the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference on the back of good vibes and a tireless defense.

Just one year later, Nick Nurse is gone and the Raptors are on the precipice of an offseason full of changes. Masai Ujiri would be a fool to look at last season and determine that the best course of action is running it back with an almost identical group in leadership positions on the floor.

The Raptors could achieve that goal of some serious change via some big trades involving names like Pascal Siakam or OG Anunoby, but they shouldn’t necessarily have to make one of those moves and call it a day. Fixing this team is a multi-faceted process.

If the Raptors can cross off these very important checkmarks at some point in the near future, they can start building a team that can actually be feared in the Eastern Conference. Once they hire a coach, the Raptors need to hit the ground running with these three objectives.

3 things Raptors must do to improve in 2023.

3. Draft a scoring guard

The Raptors need to push through all of the Bilal Coulibaly rumors and focus on perimeter players if they want to add someone that can be a contributor in his rookie season. Luckily for them, the middle tier of players in this class is full of talented guards who could help them right away.

Arkansas’ Nick Smith and Baylor’s Keyonte George have been two of the most popular names that Toronto has been connected to by those who partake in mock drafts, though UConn’s Jordan Hawkins has also started to rise up draft boards lately. All three of them would be solid players on this roster.

The Toronto Raptors need a young scorer very badly.

Fred VanVleet is on the verge of ending his Raptors career by leaving in free agency, elevating this need from “important” to “Masai can’t leave the offseason without making sure this gets done” level. This will require him to go against his own drafting tendencies.

Ujiri and the Raptors have often eschewed positional fit and taken the best athlete on the board. Defense has also been a priority. While players like George and Smith might not necessarily be the perfect fit, the Raptors would be foolish if they didn’t go after them due to some draft nitpicks.