The Toronto Raptors may not be making waves in the Eastern Conference playoff race, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t still surprising the NBA world from time to time. Recently, we witnessed an inexperienced Raptors lineup that seemed destined for defeat. However, against all odds, the young team rallied past a Paolo Banchero-led Magic squad, securing one of the most amusing victories in franchise history.
Aside from these random spurts of success, the Raptors still have a lot of business and roster moves to address regarding their future, as well as the impending arrival of freshly paid former All-Star Brandon Ingram. Ever since that deal went down, the big question that arised was who could be deemed the most tradeable out of the current high-cost Raptors players on the roster?
And as Michael Scotto of HoopsHype revealed in a recent NBA intel piece, the Toronto Raptors were rumored to be on board with shopping Canadian star forward RJ Barrett in trade talks at the deadline. With that piece of information now apparent and confirmed by an insider, it’s all but certain that Toronto will continue to place Barrett at the forefront of their trade block and look to move in a less crowded direction for wing players.
Despite how obvious it seemed that Barrett would be the domino to fall, it hasn't stopped the "Maple Mamba" from performing at a steadfast rate, night after night, for the Raptors.
Look, I'm not oblivious to his inefficiencies or to the questions surrounding his effectiveness in creating a winning culture. In that regard, Barrett resembles your prototypical NBA high-scoring player with "empty stats."
Even if he isn't quite a star per se, Barrett has largely been the Raptors' go-to guy on offense for most of their 2024-25 campaign. I remember seeing an X post not too long ago from Raptors commentator Es Baraheni, where he mentioned that, even on nights when it doesn't seem possible, Barrett can always somehow churn out 20 or more points.
RJ Barrett is proving his worth to the Raptors amid growing trade talks
And that's certainly the truth, as Barrett is averaging 21.7 points on 47.6% field goal shooting and 35.7% from three, along with 6.4 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game in 49 games played thus far.
It might not always be a pretty route to get to that 20 point mark, but you can bet, Barrett is one of the only consistent guys on the whole Raptors roster to have the offensive bug always kicking in. His free throw woes and defensive limitations certainly affect his otherwise strong game, but they don't render Barrett's contributions completely useless by any stretch.
It's very easy for any player who hears their name attached to trade rumors to just tap out of their current situation and maybe cause drama, as Jimmy Butler did recently prior to his trade to Golden State. However, RJ Barrett has maintained his usual performance despite the uncertainty surrounding his future with the Raptors, and I believe the front office should take note of that.
I'm not arguing that Barrett should be considered untouchable on the trade block; rather, if there's a chance to retain a 20+ point per game scorer while making changes in other areas, it's an option worth exploring for Toronto. Given that this is his hometown and rumors are swirling about the possibility of not being wanted by his own city, it's clear that RJ Barrett is handling the adversity like a true professional.