Grading a new trade proposal to bring Bayou All-Star to the Raptors

Grade the Trade for the Raptors

The Toronto Raptors have been linked to Brandon Ingram this summer, but almost always in the context of trading Jakob Poeltl to the Pelicans in exchange. That puts the Raptors in something of a bind, trading their defensive backbone for another offensive star. It never made much sense from a team-building standpoint.

This deal doesn't give up a single starter, however. Bruce Brown is a player the Raptors want to move on from anyway, and Chris Boucher doesn't figure to have much of a role this season. For the price of a low-upside first and a second they add an All-Star to the mix to start at small forward, sliding RJ Barrett back to his more natural shooting guard position.

One of the ways the Raptors can be dangerous this season is that they are starting three players who can all dribble, pass and shoot. What if that number increases to four? All of the debate about whether Ingram is worth a maximum contract or how he fits with Zion Williamson tends to obscure that Ingram is a really good player. He is a gifted scorer, a good shooter, an underrated playmaker and a solid defender. He's not a true elite superstar, but that's why he might be available to the Raptors.

The ideal "fit" for the Raptors is to have an elite shooter and an elite defender in the final starting slot, but those players are extremely hard to find. Ingram represents a play at an even higher ceiling, hoping that he fills his role with the level of talent the Raptors can't add in any other way.

The value here is tremendous, and the fit isn't prohibitive. The biggest obstacle is the contract; the Raptors can't afford to pay Ingram a maximum deal or they will skyrocket above the second tax apron. Can they sign him to a deal in the $35 million range instead of the $45-50 range? That may be the starting point to get something done.

In the worst case, the Raptors trade for Ingram, get a young two-way forward for a year, and he walks away to sign elsewhere in free agency. That's not ideal, but it's also not extremely likely; there is a paucity of cap space next summer, so Ingram won't have much of a market. In that worst case, however, the Raptors only gave up a mediocre first and expiring money - that's a gamble with a low downside.

This is sneakily a really good trade, and well worth the swing from the Toronto Raptors' front office. They once made a similar trade for an undervalued forward and it won them a championship; Ingram is no Kawhi Leonard, but this is another deal worth making.

Grade: A-