The Toronto Raptors face real questions at this year’s trade deadline.
They have been connected to pretty much every big name on the market, and for good reason. They own all of their future first-round picks and have numerous middle-tier salaries to match big contracts in a trade. In the current NBA collective bargaining agreement, those two items are extremely valuable.
However, I have already highlighted why just because the Raptors can pull off a big move does not mean they should. The latest insider intel supports that idea, as the Raptors are reportedly not planning to act too hastily at the deadline. This comes amid questions about the rumored win-now pressure facing GM Bobby Webster.
The goal of every NBA team should be to win a championship. That idea may seem counterintuitive when discussing Toronto potentially not making a big move at the deadline. If the goal is to win a championship, then why shouldn’t the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference give up future assets to push this team to the top of the conference?
The answer is all about timelines.
Will the Raptors strike now or hold off for a patient approach?
Toronto is the eighth-youngest team in the NBA (average age weighted by minutes played), and their core players are all under long-term contracts (except for RJ Barrett). Meanwhile, most major names on the trade market are much further along the aging curve (excluding Ja Morant, who the Raptors should steer clear from for entirely different reasons).
No major name truly fits the timeline of this young core. If the goal is ultimately set on winning a championship, I would argue the best chance of this team winning one is allowing this group to grow together rather than accelerating the timeline prematurely.
This is the first season Brandon Ingram has played with this core, and both Jakob Poeltl and RJ Barrett have missed extended time playing alongside him. Also, the team does not yet know what it has in its young wing rotation between Ja’Kobe Walter, Gradey Dick, and Ochai Agbaji. Before Toronto trades away core pieces or multiple younger players, it should first see what this group is able to accomplish together and which young wings are truly part of the long-term picture.
In the offseason, the Raptors will have a much clearer understanding of which players are foundational pieces and which are not. Not to mention, it is far easier to move players in the offseason, when teams’ salary caps are more flexible and the market is less constrained.
Trading for someone like Anthony Davis or Domantas Sabonis could give Toronto a better chance of making a deeper playoff push this season, but it would blow up this core before the organization ever truly knew what it had. Plus, giving up a future first-round pick (or more) could create unforeseen issues when this team is actually ready to compete.
The 2014–2019 Raptors walked this line perfectly. The organization kept its core intact for years before finally making the moves to push the team over the edge. That approach ultimately resulted in a championship. Championship teams are built over years of smart, calculated decisions, not by accelerating a young core for a one-year, all-in push.
If Toronto feels the need to make a minor move to bring in a proven veteran, I would applaud that decision. However, cashing in multiple assets for a premature championship push would raise serious questions about this team’s decision-makers.