The Raptors are off to a modest 5-5 start and lost every game they played against a potential contender. Kawhi Leonard only played two games before being ruled out with a left knee injury. The Raptors have struggled to make up for his absence. Even if Leonard returns soon and stays healthy for most of the season, the Raptors seem a few pieces away from true contention.
For one, expecting Leonard alone to get the team from twenty-seventh in 3-point percentage to where it needs to be would be asking a lot. The Raptors could really use another proven 3-point shooter off the bench. Moreover, the Raptors’ center rotation remains questionable. Jakob Poeltl played two good games against the Milwaukee Bucks and Memphis Grizzlies, but it’s uncertain whether his health will keep up for the rest of the season. Moreover, his contract is still bad and limits the Raptors’ ability to fill out the rotation with reliable and consistent players.
If a team is willing to take him on, a Poeltl trade should still be very much on the table for the Raptors, even if they have to attach picks.
Es Baraheni proposed a mock trade on The Athletic NBA Daily on November 10 that would be too good to pass up if the LA Clippers are willing to make another trade with the Raptors: Jakob Poeltl with picks and some salary attached for Brook Lopez and Max Strus.
Strus would help with the Raptors’ 3-point woes. He’s a 36.9% shooter for his career and regularly lets about six 3-pointers fly per game. In 2024-25, his last fully healthy season, he shot 38.6% on 6.8 attempts for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Raptors could really use someone with his reputation as a shooter to space the floor.
Brook Lopez may already be 38 years old, but he’s off to a good start with the Clippers, shooting over 40% on 3.1 3-point attempts per game and averaging one steal and one block per game. Despite his age, Lopez has been reliably available in recent seasons, playing 75 games last season and 80 in the season prior. He would be an amazing get for the Raptors, offering size and rim protection, while adding the 3-point shooting their frontcourt so desperately lacks.
Why would the Clippers consider this deal?
The only reason the Clippers would ever send the Raptors two more quality players is the draft picks. They lost several picks as a result of the salary-cap circumvention investigation, and it’s pretty difficult to pull off a quality rebuilding or retooling process without draft picks.
The Raptors still have first-round picks in 2028, 2029, 2030, and 2032 as well as second-round picks in 2027, 2028, and 2029. Some of those picks could be appealing to the Clippers.
If the Raptors are desperate enough, they could even offer rookie Allen Graves along with Poeltl to sweeten the pot. They would have to include other salary anyway, and Graves is probably someone the Clippers would be interested in. Moving on from him so soon would sting, but the Raptors put themselves in a win-now position with the Kawhi Leonard trade, and that means they don’t have the luxury to keep every young player they want to develop.
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