5 Centers the Raptors might replace Jakob Poeltl with by the trade deadline

No. 1: Karl-Anthony Towns

The ultimate overcrowded center room is in Minnesota, where the Timberwolves have a Top-5 offensive center in Karl-Anthony Towns starting out of position at power forward alongside the reigning Defensive Player of the Year in Rudy Gobert. Behind them, Naz Reid could start on a number of teams and is their third center. Fourth-stringer Luka Garza would deserve rotation minutes elsewhere and likely won't sniff the court in most games this year.

The Wolves just made it to the Western Conference Finals this past season and were a game out of first place in the standings; they don't seem likely to tear things down anytime soon. At the same time, they are paying Towns, Gobert and Reid a whopping $107 million this season. If their season doesn't start well, it's not inconceivable the team would look to reduce their tax bill and move on from Towns.

Adding the four-time All-Star would not be cheap, but much of the burden of taking him on would come with taking on his salary. Depending on the return they receive for Poeltl, the Raptors could package salary with Bruce Brown Jr. or perhaps even RJ Barrett depending on the kind of swing they are trying to make.

Towns would blow the roof off of their offensive ceiling, giving Scottie Barnes incredible amounts of space to operate and forming a lethal pick-and-roll combination with Immanuel Quickley. Defensively the Raptors would have some major question marks, as Towns is active but ultimately not a deterrent in the paint. Would the offensive tradeoff be worth it?

It's a question worth digging into further; tomorrow we will build a trade with Towns coming back to the Raptors as Poeltl heads out. If the Raptors want to take a swing for the fences and forge an identity as an elite offense, trading for Towns would be a wild move and the kind of chance some teams need to take to change their destiny.

Sometimes when you empty the lemonade you replace it with lemonade. Sometimes, however, you need to try a different drink entirely.