Grade the Trade: Raptors pair Paul George with Kawhi to defend title in alternate past

Grade the Trade: Should the Raptors have made this trade?

Does that mean this trade was one the Toronto Raptors should have made?

That’s a more complicated question to answer. Keeping Kawhi Leonard and adding Paul George would have been a short-term coup, and they had a great chance to win a second consecutive championship in 2020. The problems would have come from there, as the team became extremely expensive and as Leonard’s lower body continued to break down. As Giannis Antetokounmpo came into his own as a playoff performer and the Brooklyn Nets weaponized, the Raptors would have been dealing with a star who couldn’t stay healthy at the end of the year.

Giving up four first-round picks and two young All-Star players is a steep price to pay for one true run at a title and then injuries and frustrations moving forward. At the same time, it’s not like the Raptors have been dominant by keeping their picks and young players. They have one series win and two playoff berths overall in the last five seasons, they squandered picks on Malachi Flynn and trading for Jakob Poeltl, and a title looks every bit as far away than if they had Leonard and George.

The future is brighter now with Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley, but the path to a title isn’t clear and they may end up going years before they assemble a roster that can truly contend. Having their own draft picks allows them to pursue that path, but would they be better off with a strong run to the title early and whatever trade return they could have received for George now? 

The answer is probably yes, and in this alternate history perhaps the stars aligned for another healthy Leonard playoff run over the past few seasons. What George and Leonard could not accomplish in Los Angeles, perhaps they could have pulled off in Toronto, with Nick Nurse as head coach and Masai Ujiri building out the roster. It’s a difficult question, but it would likely have been worth it to make this trade.

Grade: B