Raptors Mailbag: Trade Season Begins, Injuries Mount, and What’s Next for Toronto

With Scottie Barnes sidelined, Jakob Poeltl banged up, and NBA Trade Season in full swing, the Toronto Raptors face big questions about their future

Dec 16, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors guard Jamal Shead (23) controls the ball against Chicago Bulls guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) during the fourth quarter at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images / Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

The mood around the Raptors has shifted — again. A five-game losing streak, another injury to Scottie Barnes, and Jakob Poeltl now sidelined with a left groin strain have Toronto staring down the wrong end of the standings. In a rebuilding year, that’s not entirely unexpected, but it still stings. Instead of tracking signs of growth and progress, the Raptors are once again keeping a close eye on the reverse standings.

With NBA Trade Season officially underway and questions swirling around the future of key players, it’s a fitting time to dive into your questions. From potential moves to player development, here’s a closer look at where things stand for the Raptors — and where they might be headed.

If you have a question for a future mailbag article, feel free to direct message me on Instagram @aaronbenrose.

Will the Raptors trade Jakob at the deadline? - @abilaash1

It’s unlikely. Jakob Poeltl will certainly draw the most attention in trade talks over the next couple of months — it’s far more intriguing to speculate about Poeltl’s potential departure than what the Raptors might get in a deal involving Bruce Brown or Chris Boucher. That said, the odds of Toronto moving Poeltl seem slim. The Raptors lack an obvious way to replace his impact, particularly on the defensive end and in pick-and-roll situations, if they were to trade him.

Now, if Toronto could pull off something akin to the Marc Gasol-for-Jonas Valančiūnas trade from the championship season — where the Raptors swapped a younger big man for a seasoned veteran center — it might be a different story. A deal that nets a promising young center while allowing Toronto to conceivably compete next year would be ideal. The problem? Those trades are exceedingly rare, and there’s no clear evidence such an opportunity exists right now.

Are the Raptors gonna retire DeMar DeRozan’s jersey? - @shifty_shaan

With Vince Carter’s jersey retirement now in the books, Kyle Lowry seems like the obvious choice to be next in line for the honor. After that, things get a bit murkier, but I’d bet DeMar DeRozan’s jersey eventually joins them in the rafters. As the franchise’s all-time leading scorer and a player who remains deeply loved in Toronto, DeRozan holds a place just below Lowry in Raptors lore.

Hopefully Drake doesn’t show up to that ceremony.

Can Gradey Dick be a plus player on defense someday? - @denham3000

Gradey Dick has the height and length to hold his own defensively, but he’s still too thin and lacks the quickness to be a reliable defender in today’s NBA. I’m not convinced he’ll ever reach that level, but that’s not necessarily a dealbreaker. If he develops into a high-end floor spacer and a well-above-average offensive player, that’ll more than compensate.

Ideally, when the Raptors are ready to compete for a championship again, Dick will be the weakest defender in a lineup full of plus-defenders and his offense will make up the impact difference for Toronto to succeed.

Are Raptors coaches doing a bad job because their players have so many injuries? - @Shaohuacrystal

Injuries seem to be wreaking havoc across the league, so it’s hard to single out the Raptors’ coaching or medical staff as the culprit. One theory that comes up often is that today’s players don’t grow up playing multiple sports or running around outdoors, taking the natural bumps and bruises that build durability.

With so much money and analysis being poured into keeping players healthy, I’m hesitant — as a medical outsider — to point fingers when it comes to Toronto’s injuries.

Could the Raps get Zach Edey? - @ballerdollar27

The Grizzlies stand out as one of the few teams that could realistically trade for Jakob Poeltl at this year’s deadline — and might even want to. That said, I don’t see them parting with Zach Edey in such a deal. A move like that would make a lot of sense for Toronto, but it feels unlikely to materialize.

Do Scottie Barnes and Cooper Flagg have similar skills and would they fit together? - @andrewfahmy

Yes, Scottie Barnes and Cooper Flagg do share similar skillsets, and if you were designing Barnes’ ideal co-star in a lab, it probably wouldn’t look like Flagg. But that’s not something worth worrying about right now. Toronto’s chances of landing Flagg are slim regardless of where they finish in the standings.

If the Raptors do land the No. 1 pick, they should take the best player available and figure the rest out later. If they believe Flagg can be a star, you draft him and see how it works alongside Barnes. If it doesn’t work out, you can always explore trading one of them down the road.

Who would be the odd man out in the starting five if the Raptors draft in the top five next year? - @webstercorry

A lot of this depends on who the Raptors draft and what type of player they turn out to be. As it stands, the weakest of Toronto’s five starters is Gradey Dick, though that could change over the remainder of the season.

It’s hard to imagine the Raptors moving RJ Barrett to the bench, but he’d make for an excellent sixth man once the team is truly ready to compete. Another intriguing option would be shifting Immanuel Quickley to the bench and letting Scottie Barnes take over as the lead point guard. The issue there is that Toronto just committed to Quickley as their starting point guard, and it’s tough to see them relegating him to a bench role — the same spot he occupied in New York.