The Toronto Raptors may have fired Nick Nurse, hired a coach with a history in player development in Darko Rajakovic, and saw Fred VanVleet leave the team to join the Houston Rockets, but Masai Ujiri is still trying to put together a team who could make it to the postseason.
In an Eastern Conference that is much deeper than it has been in years, the Raptors are not expected to move the needle. After crashing out of the play-in last year at the hands of Diar DeRozan, her father DeMar, and the Chicago Bulls, the general vibes surrounding this team have been off.
The Raptors needed to make wholesale changes to how the team operates if they wanted any shot at making it to the postseason, and they have done a solid job at starting that remaking by swapping out Nurse and VanVleet with Rajakovic and the team’s brand-new backcourt.
The Raptors will have no shot of making the postseason if they are unable to accomplish these tasks. If Rajakovic can implement these schematic changes, and if Ujiri can practice patience in the front office when teams start calling, the postseason may not be an unreasonable goal.
3 things the Toronto Raptors must do to get to the playoffs.
3. Make Scottie Barnes the point guard
The Raptors were the subject of a good deal of offseason mockery when they signed Dennis Schroder following VanVleet’s departure, as many (correctly) view him as a major step down at the point guard position. However, Schroder may not have been signed to be the primary point guard.
One of the main reasons Toronto picked Barnes No. 4 overall was the fact that he is a ridiculously good passer for a player his size. Why would Toronto choose to once again make him a traditional frontcourt player instead of letting him be the main offensive juggernaut?
The Toronto Raptors must lean on Scottie Barnes.
The Raptors’ moves in the last two seasons have all been centered around making sure that Barnes has all the tools at his disposal needed to evolve into a genuine superstar. Toronto will gain nothing by keeping the training wheels on their prized possession.
A starting lineup with Barnes and Gary Trent Jr. in the backcourt, OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam as the two forward spots, and Jakob Poeltl at the center spot might be the best and most effective way to get the Raptors performing well on the offensive side of the ball under Rajakovic.
2. Give Gradey Dick minutes early
Under Nick Nurse, the Raptors were usually very proactive with regard to how early and often their rookies saw rotation time. Scottie Barnes was a starter right away, and even less heralded players like second-rounder Christian Koloko got minutes the second he came into the NBA.
The Raptors need to adhere to this philosophy once more with Dick, who was drafted to help fix the team’s limitations with 3-point shooting and half-court offense. While Dick may not be ready to be a primary scorer just yet, Summer League showed exactly how he can help this team.
The Toronto Raptors must play Gradey Dick.
Dick was a lights-out shooter in high school and college, meaning that he should be expected to be a weapon in the NBA from deep as soon as he steps on the floor. Summer League also showed that he is better at finishing at the rim and creating turnovers on defense than many expected.
Getting Dick around 20 minutes per game should be a priority for Rajakovic, as the other options to fill Dick’s role as the backup shooting guard don’t provide as much, well, shooting. If Rajakovic is the developer of talent Toronto thinks he is, the Raptors should feel confident in his ability to iron out his flaws.
1. Keep Pascal Siakam
The Raptors have been inundated with Siakam trade proposals, as they are either eager to start a rebuild or nervous about another All-NBA season enabling Siakam to earn a supermax contract in the vein of Jaylen Brown. However, trading him might be the wrong move right now for Toronto.
Given the team’s troubles with adding free agents and the fact that Siakam will not recoup a ton of assets in a trade due to his contract status, the Raptors may not be able to reload talent very easily. Barnes is tremendous, but can he be the guy without Siakam this early in his career?
The Toronto Raptors must retain Pascal Siakam.
The Raptors just saw Siakam put up the two best statistical seasons of his career despite getting such a heavy workload of minutes and losing shots to VanVleet in the backcourt. A coach like Rajakovic, who has an offensive background, would clearly love to have Siakam in the fold.
Ujiri wouldn’t trade Siakam for pennies on the dollar, and he has shown that he can be extremely loyal to his own players. Moving Siakam would fly in the face of that directive, so keeping him and letting him cook with a new coach is the best option.