Raptors Must Tread Carefully Amid Veteran Superstar Trade Rumors
Death, taxes, and Pascal Siakam trade rumors.
Several Raptors have been the subject of trade talks since last season, with potential 'Spicy P' trades arguably the hottest banter. That said, Toronto is not exactly scrambling to send him packing.
Team president Masai Ujiri recently shared his thoughts on the state of the Raptors. Essentially, he believes the team is young and that more time is needed for players to fully adjust to head coach Darko Rajaković’s system.
Ujiri re-iterated that Toronto's ultimate goal is to win, but also went onto say things such as "We'll see how it goes." This next stretch of games will naturally play a large role in determining Siakam's future as a Raptor, with the scales tipping further towards "trade him" with each passing day.
Toronto finished last season with a 41-41 record, and this year's 9-11 record has showcased more of the same. Even if the Raptors wanted to keep Siakam, is there a world where it makes sense for a rebuilding team to lock up a veteran power forward (on the verge of 30) to what will likely be a max contract?
Regardless of what Toronto decides, the organization simply cannot afford to deal Siakam for a lackluster return. The Kawhi Leonard trade brought the city its first NBA championship and may be the best deal in team history, but the acquired assets in some of the subsequent trades have been tough to stomach.
Giving up Norman Powell for Rodney Hood and Gary Trent Jr. certainly hasn't played out as hoped. Trent Jr. has taken positive steps in Toronto over the last two seasons as well, but his future remains a mystery in the midst of a down year that is also a contract year.
Powell's abilities from beyond the arc have especially been missed, with his career 38.8% 3-point field goal percentage comically higher than the paltry 33.7% the Raptors are shooting as a team through 20 games this season.
An encouraging rest-of-season performance from Trent Jr., followed by a reasonably-priced contract, could help the trade seem less painful, but it's hard to say the same of the Kyle Lowry trade that happened less than five months later. For those who may not remember, the trade was simply Lowry for Goran Dragic and Precious Achiuwa.
Dragic's Raptors career lasted all of five games. While still young, Toronto clearly isn't feeling great about Achiuwa's potential. After all, the team used its only 2022 draft pick on Christian Koloko in addition to re-acquiring Jakob Poeltl in exchange for Khem Birch and three draft picks (2024 Top-6 protected 1st, 2023 2nd, 2025 2nd).
That's a lot of extra draft and asset capital spent on a position that was supposed to be solved by trading one of the best players in franchise history. It's hard to be a rebuilding team without draft picks.
All's to say, the Raptors need to make sure they aren't trading away Siakam just for the sake of doing something. It seems Masai and company may have been on that page last summer when the Heat reportedly offered a competitive package including Tyler Herro and a pair of first-round picks.
Last season was aggressively average and the roster didn't change very much, but the Raptors brass may not have pulled the trigger because they felt the organic improvement of a young roster might suffice.
Now, time is running out with the NBA Trade Deadline (Thursday February 8th, 2024) just over two months away. If the Raptors can't comfortably stay above .500 during December and January, moving on from Siakam and perhaps even other core players like OG Anunoby certainly makes the most sense.
The aforementioned package supposedly offered by Miami is a good example of the return Toronto should seek. A package of first-round picks/high-potential young roster players shouldn't be hard to obtain from a team that is serious about adding an all-star calibre power forward. Especially if an extension is in the cards.
The appeal of Herro himself, at the time, stemmed from his half-court creation abilities, which the Raptors are in desperate need of. Improving shooting efficiency and bench depth is also critical if Toronto were to get a deal done. Upgrading at point guard is a must as well, with Dennis Schröder being a nice veteran bounce back story, but not a long-term solution.
Aside from Zach LaVine, there aren't a lot of potential swaps involving similar caliber roster players. If the opportunity to acquire LaVine or someone similar for Siakam arises, it should be heavily considered. The goal is to improve the team going forward, but landing a LaVine type in their prime means achieving present and future improvement at a position of great need.
If Toronto is truly serious about maximizing the potential of Scottie Barnes, acquiring other high-end young players who fit his game to would be a great place to start.
It would be sad to see the Spicy P era of Raptors basketball come to an end, but it would certainly be a bit easier if he were traded for the right price.
