Well, it's official. Turns out all the noise about Toronto's interest in Pelicans star forward Brandon Ingram was, in fact, reputable.
Former All-Star Brandon Ingram traded to Toronto Raptors
On the evening of February 5, there were significant developments making its rounds on the status of a potential Brandon Ingram deal to Toronto. NBA insider Chris Haynes would share on X around 11 p.m. ET, that "advanced discussions" were underway between the Raptors and Pelicans. Earlier in the night, it was reported that Toronto and Atlanta were "neck-and-neck" in the Brandon Ingram sweepstakes.
All this was taking place as the Toronto Raptors suffered a grueling loss at home against the Memphis Grizzlies, coming up short in a blowout final tally of 138–107.
And then, ESPN's basketball insider extraordinaire Shams Charania officially broke the news and trade details on X:
Breaking: The New Orleans Pelicans have traded Brandon Ingram to the Toronto Raptors for Bruce Brown Jr., Kelly Olynyk, one first-round pick and one second-rounder, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/tI4jo2cYhM
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 6, 2025
At face value, a strong chess move by the front office to bring on some ex-All-Star talent to the team is in Toronto. Many can concur that Toronto has a very hard time attracting noteworthy stars or free agents to come up North, and Brandon Ingram might be the Raptors' best acquisition since Kawhi Leonard.
But then, the dust settles, and maybe you start reflecting on what this Raptors squad moving forward will look like. The projected starters would look something like this, in this order: Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Brandon Ingram, Scottie Barnes, and Jakob Poeltl.
A solid group of talent, without a doubt, but what exactly does Toronto expect this unit to accomplish? Does this team scream title contenders, or merely a middle-of-the-pack team that can make some noise in the playoffs?
Is this Raptors team being built to win it all or just compete?
Ingram's fit certainly addresses the Raptors' lack of a reliable creator on offense, but was he truly the best option out there to elevate Toronto in the long run? This isn't just a move you do if you're Masai Ujiri, because it's cheap, even though he got the job done without sacrificing anything too crazy.
Masai and company are clearly locked in to Ingram for a reason, and with the 27-year-old due for a payday this offseason; is Toronto possibly shooting themselves in the foot by committing to this expensive core?
You need to think about Quickley and Barrett's role from here on out too. In the case of Barrett, he could be relied upon to shoulder Toronto's offense, but now with a score-first player like Ingram on the team, Barrett's touches were drastically shot down. Barrett, while an okay defender at times, is not your prototypical 3-and-D wing who complements a championship core; so if he can't score, what else does he bring to the table?
Moreover, Quickley's topsy-turvy health status and defensive woes are of dire concern. Toronto extended him to a lengthy payday, with the hope that he could be the Raptors' reliable point guard of the future, but again, with Ingram's addition, he just became a lot more expendable.
The fit alongside Barnes and Poeltl might be promising, but even still, it doesn't jump out as a clear-cut needle-mover that would have fans envisioning a path to title glory. Perhaps Toronto could still luck out and grab a top-end prospect in the 2025 NBA Draft? Alternatively, they could not.
It's not so much jumping to emotionally charged conclusions, but facts are facts. The roster construction is definitely a bit odd and certainly expensive. Just a few key reminders to reflect on as the Raptors are in the midst of making possible franchise-altering decisions.