3 Raptors who could be traded if Masai Ujiri blows up roster
By Mike Luciano
The Toronto Raptors have seen their good vibes dissipate in almost record time, as Darko Rajakovic and Pascal Siakam have seen their team slip to 1-3 following a humiliating home loss against a bad Portland Trail Blazers team that was both short-handed and playing on the second half of a back-to-back.
The Raptors had multiple opportunities to blow up the roster in the offseason, as Siakam and OG Anunoby are impending free agents and the roster is clearly not good enough to compete for a championship at any point in the near future. Instead, Masai Ujiri plowed ahead with this group.
While the season is still very young, the fanbase’s scales are starting to tip more toward rebuilding instead of hoping against hope this team is going to figure out how to compete for a postseason spot. If that happens, a Raptors team that lacks a first-round pick might waive the white flag.
The Raptors should at least consider parting ways with this trio if things start to decline to a point where they become sellers. If Ujiri wants to go this route, Toronto might be able to get a whole new team that properly supports Scottie Barnes and gives Rajakovic more players to fit his scheme.
3 Toronto Raptors who could be traded in a Masai Ujiri sell-off
3. PF Chris Boucher
The Raptors have done a complete 180-degree turn on Boucher in Rajakovic’s first season, as he went from a DNP in the first game of the year against the Timberwolves to a regular backup big in the same role as last year. The results have been mixed, as is often the case with him.
Boucher is averaging 6.3 points per game and 5.7 rebounds per game. While his 35.7% field goal percentage looks horrid at face value (and the film backs up his issues finishing inside), a sixth-year veteran who has played a very consistent role on champions in the past could still get tons of looks in the rumor mill.
The Toronto Raptors could move Chris Boucher.
Boucher might be the best Raptors bench player right now. Gary Trent Jr. has been ice-cold to start the year, Precious Achiuwa looks like LeBron James and Kwame Brown in the span of five minutes, and Jalen McDaniels hasn’t scored in four games. Moving him would be tough, but it could help Toronto.
Multiple second-round picks could be on the table for Toronto, and a contender might be willing to slide Toronto a very late first-rounder. This trade not only gets assets back, but it enables Toronto to lean more into Achiuwa and give Christian Koloko a role when healthy.