Just over a week has passed since the ultimate Raptors trade bombshell dropped. Kawhi Leonard will return to Toronto, with all signs pointing to the 35-year-old closing out his Hall of Fame-worthy NBA career in Raptors colors.
And while the move to reacquire Kawhi Leonard has put many on notice, it hasn't exactly made this Raptors squad foolproof. There are still a ton of questions surrounding Toronto's current roster construct. Whether it's three-point shooting concerns, the status of RJ Barrett in the team's grand vision, or perhaps their most pressing weakness — the Raptors' current center outlook.
More specifically, the upside of this Raptors core having Jakob Poeltl as the starting big man.
Jakob Poeltl remains a key question mark for the Raptors after the Kawhi trade
The Toronto Raptors put a ton of faith in Poeltl's second stint being the team's saving grace to finally lock down a center for the future. And once upon a time, it definitely seemed like the Raptors were on to something with the Austrian center, who at one point looked like one of the league's most underrated big men.
But to the detriment of Toronto, when you factor in a puzzling extension, glaring injury troubles, and a lack of physicality revealing itself — it all came together to create the worst-case scenario with how Jakob Poeltl is perceived on the Raptors now. The Raptors saw glimpses of this downfall throughout the regular season, but giving Poeltl some flowers too, he showed a few flashes to the Jak of old at times.
Then, the playoffs came around, and the Poeltl concerns quickly evolved into complete disaster. Toronto's lone 7-footer on the roster was extremely limited in his ability to leave a tangible impact, getting outmatched by Cleveland's more robust bigs, while rookie Collin Murray-Boyles passed him by. CMB is an amazing draft swing by the Raptors, and while his driven ability to slot in as a small-ball five can work in certain settings — having some actual prototypical center archetypes to your advantage is still an important asset.
But a week into free agency, the Raptors' center lineup remains just Poeltl and Murray-Boyles, and a lot of alluring targets are now off the table.
Especially with Kawhi Leonard back in the fold, all you need to do is look back on that iconic 2019 title run. Sure, the Klaw was the darling of Raptors Nation, but I'd argue getting Marc Gasol was just as important to Toronto's championship triumph. Gasol may have been on the tailend of his NBA career, but he was leaps and bounds better than the version of Jakob Poeltl we see now. A defensively-sound and proven big man, strong floor vision and IQ at his position, with a crisp three-point shooting touch to round things out.
If the Raptors end up facing some big teams in the playoffs next year, like a 2019 grudge matchup with the 76ers, the Cavaliers once again, or the almighty New York Knicks — can Toronto really trust putting Jakob Poeltl out there in his current form? Better yet, do you just eat defeat and keep him around, or still push to find a trade suitor? In either scenario, the Raptors will need some insurance policy. Toronto can't afford to run their only two center options into the ground, especially the promising Murray-Boyles.
Thinking from a more optimistic perspective, you could argue Poeltl's season can't get any worse than it did last year, and maybe he's only on the come up from here. But then again, what if he doesn't? There is probably more reason to believe, considering all the factors at play, that Poeltl continues to regress than strengthen.
The Raptors still have the trade market and modest free agency targets to consider as options, but Toronto must take this issue very seriously, as it could become their Achilles' heel in a season with higher expectations.
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