The Toronto Raptors have a lot riding on the NBA Draft Lottery on May 12th.
They currently hold the sixth pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, but the lottery will almost certainly change that. The Raptors could leap up as high as No. 1, but they also have about a 52 percent chance of losing the pick entirely and sending it to the San Antonio Spurs.
When you add in the possibility of trading up or down the draft board, it's vital that the Raptors have a fully built draft board for every pick from first to 58th. Their board will differ from other teams as they build around Scottie Barnes, but they also must avoid the trap of passing on talented players because of positional overlap with non-core players.
Let's look at the Raptors' Top 10 Big Board at this point in the draft cycle, starting with a player who could be an elite long-term partner to Barnes in Toronto's frontcourt.
No. 1: Alex Sarr, Center, France
The 2024 NBA Draft is one of the most chaotic drafts in a very long time, likely since the infamous 2013 NBA Draft when Anthony Bennett surprisingly went first overall. As many as six or seven different players are in the mix to go first this year, which could to an extremely hectic draft night.
The most common player to be at the top of draft boards, however, is Alex Sarr, a 6'11" center from France who has been playing with the Perth Wildcats of Australia's NBL. Defensively he is everything a team could hope for in a center, an elite shot-blocker and defender in space.
The offensive game is a bit more of a work in progress, but he can dribble, pass and score at high levels for a teenager. He is comfortable shooting the ball but not accurate; if he becomes a real 3-point threat he will be a difference-maker in the NBA.
The Toronto Raptors have a center entrenched in Jakob Poeltl, but they shouldn't let that stop them from taking the best player available. Sarr and Scottie Barnes would be a truly elite defensive pairing, and if Sarr can shoot the Raptors' two-way ceiling would rise to the stratosphere.