Grade the Trade: Tectonic 3-team pitch has Raptors buying low on an All-Star

Do the Raptors make this trade?

The Toronto Raptors likely do need a second star to pair with Scottie Barnes, whether that's an unexpectedly strong leap up from Immanuel Quickley or RJ Barrett, or whether that's acquiring that player. They could get lucky and land that player in the draft, but at this point they may need to execute a trade for one.

This deal gets the Raptors a recent All-Star in his prime, a player who routinely scores 30+ points and has averaged 23.1 per game since landing in New Orleans five seasons ago. Ingram also would help balance the Raptors' roster as he is a true forward, not a shooting guard shoehorned in as a forward or a big man trying to slide up.

The Raptors would also get Robert Williams III, who is superfluous on the Portland roster but would step in as the starting center in Toronto. When healthy he has proven to be an elite defender, both in guarding the paint and switching onto the perimeter. The Boston Celtics built an elite defense around him and he could do so again in Toronto. Yet he has also missed most of the last two seasons due to injury, and the most he has ever played is 61 in 2021-22, the year he finished All-Defense and started for the Celtics in the NBA Finals.

The problem with committing to pay Ingram is that this roster will be extremely expensive and at the same time largely unproven. Would this group work well together? It's certainly possible, but Ingram and Zion Williamson are a difficult fit in New Orleans because both need the ball to thrive, and it would seem like the same would be true of Ingram and Scottie Barnes. And Rob Williams is a force when healthy, but there is no guarantee he would be anything close to that in Toronto. That's a couple of massive ifs.

Ingram is a talented player, and this deal would represent an intriguing buy-low possibility on him. It allows Toronto to keep the powder dry for another big trade down the line for a greater star, and would have Ingram or Barrett in place as the base salary in such a move.

This doesn't seem like the best long-term collection of players, but the upside is significant. If Ingram thrives playing next to Quickley and Barnes and Williams stays healthy, the Raptors will have parlayed a trio of veteran players into a better, younger pair. But the risk is significant, and the most probably outcome is that this ends up being a disappointing move for Toronto.

Grade: B-