Grade the Trade: Raptors get former All-Star from Lakers in bold 3-team proposal

Should the Raptors make this trade?

The Toronto Raptors are highly motivated to trade Bruce Brown, as he does very little for them if he stays on the roster heading into the season. If they can get back much of any asset for him they will consider the deal.

The problem is that this trade is the exact opposite of what the Raptors are looking for in a Bruce Brown trade. The primary returning asset is D'Angelo Russell, a good floor-raising point guard who does very little for a Raptors team with Immanuel Quickley entrenched at the point. Russell is also on an expiring deal, so he essentially just steps into the Bruce Brown "need to trade" slot on the roster.

The carrot here is supposed to be Jalen Hood-Schifino, the No. 17 pick from just one year ago. The issue is that he was almost certainly overdrafted at the time and did absolutely nothing as a rookie to suggest otherwise. Perhaps he would be a low-cost flier, but at a crowded position and with the most probable outcome of declining his fourth-year team option next offseason.

The Raptors need to get back forward depth, not more guards; with Sasha Vezenkov walking away from the team they essentially have no true forwards on the roster except for Scottie Barnes; everyone else is more of a 2/3 or a 4/5 playing out of position. In the modern NBA that's an untenable reality to live in, and any Brown trade has to bring back a forward.

This deal makes a lot of sense for the Lakers, it makes reasonable sense for the Blazers, and it makes very little sense for the Raptors. They should pass on this one.

Grade: C-