Depth chart soon enough
The Toronto Raptors have waved farewell to Marc Gasol and Fred VanVleet. Stanley Johnson has been moved for no meaningful return. Patrick McCaw was offered, and he wisely accepted, a buyout on the final year of his contract. After all those departures, at least we can welcome Serge Ibaka back.
Actually none of those things have happened – yet. Since I believe they will, I’m proceeding to rebuild the Raptors’ roster by plugging the gaps with either new players, or promoted current ones.
| Starter | #2 | #3 | #4 | Has a contract | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Point Guard [1] | Kyle Lowry | Terrence Davis | |||
| Shooting Guard [2] | Norman Powell | Matt Thomas | Paul Watson | Pat Connaughton | Oshae Brissett |
| Small Forward [3] | OG Anunoby | Pat Connaughton | Paul Watson | Oshae Brissett | |
| Power Forward [4] | Pascal Siakam | Jakob Poeltl | Rondae Hollis-Jefferson | Dewan Hernandez | |
| Center [5] | Serge Ibaka | Chris Boucher | Jakob Poeltl | Dewan Hernandez |
I’ve taken liberties with this chart, just as I have with my expectations of who will or won’t be returning. For instance, while Paul Watson may be up to the task of being a helpful swingman off the bench, he hasn’t convinced Nick Nurse yet. Watson will be 26 years old by the time next season tips off, so his runway is extremely short. Even naming him as the #3 option may be beyond his grasp.
The #2 options are currently on the roster, with ‘team-option’ type contracts; I expect all to be back. (Rondae is an RFA, but I suspect he will come to terms.)
As we can see, the roster has holes everywhere. The team’s greatest need remains a cohort of swingmen. Since our first-round draft pick is #29 (the penalty we pay for regular-season success), the chances of finding a gifted rookie are all but nil.
What to do? Time to take a long look at the free-agent marketplace, where Masai Ujiri has been extremely quiet so far.
Is that all there is?
This year’s ‘class’ isn’t terribly exciting…OK, it’s downright dull. However, the Raptors aren’t looking for quick-fixes to the starting five. We need useful players coming off the bench.
Dario Saric is a Restricted Free Agent [RFA]. I wouldn’t touch the guy – he can give you 10 quality minutes, then disappear for the next 20.
Jakob Poeltl has a qualifying offer from his incumbent team, the San Antonio Spurs. I suspect their future isn’t nearly as bright as their past, and Jakob may be happy to hear from our people. He’s not a swingman, and he’ll never be a volume scorer. Yet for a reasonable price Jak will provide quality defense punctuated by an absurd number of blocked shots. He could be plugged in easily as #2 at the 4, and #3 at the 5. He’s not hopeless on offense, because he grabs his share of rebounds and can convert those. I’d be happy to see him back in town.
Kris Dunn has bounced around the NBA while trying to peel off the career-killing labels of ‘draft bust’ and ‘injury prone’. He hasn’t given up, and he’s young enough to make a leap. I can see inking him to a one-year deal for minimum money.
Emmanuel Mudiay is another single-digit lottery pick who has disappointed. But he’s only 23, and has always struck me as a hustler. Could he be another low-risk acquisition? Sometimes players need to learn the hard way that they aren’t stars before they are able to carve out a meaningful role for themselves. Here’s another bit of humble pie: he may need to accept a two-way contract.
Tristan Thompson is available, though he’s not coming cheap. I also don’t know if he would be ‘sold’ on his role as Pascal’s (and Serge’s?) backup. Tristan is an exceptional rebounder, particularly on the offensive glass, and defends his position with energy. He won’t score much. I’d rather have Poeltl.
If we wanted to step out a bit, and take a chance, Pat Connaughton is on the market. He’s one of those “watch out for him next season” guys, and he will be 28 in January, so hardly an ingenue. Even so, he probably could be had for $2.5 M or so, which won’t hurt our cap status much. He can play the 2 or 3 with energy and athleticism, and is a better outside shooter than Rondae.
Not done yet
I’m pretty sure you’re not vibrating with excitement at the thought of these choices; I remind you this free-agent group is underwhelming. There are others, like Montrezl Harrell and Christian Wood, who might be excellent fits, but aren’t likely to consider other teams. DeMar DeRozan has a player option, but will cost a bomb, and we need to get younger anyway.
Free agency doesn’t appear to be a panacea, so what’s left? We’ve been spoiled by Masai’s amazing ability to find NBA-grade players in free agency. Will he unveil another undrafted prodigy?
The roster has a long way to go.
