Bruce Brown‘s life has been a whirlwind over the past week and it might not slow down for a while, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet. After picking up his championship ring January 14 in Denver, Brown arrived at Pacers’ practice on Wednesday and learned he had been traded to Toronto. He took his physical a day later and played that night. On Friday, he was on a plane with his new teammates for Saturday’s game in New York.
Brown may be on the move again, as he’s still a popular trade target ahead of the February 8 deadline. He told Grange that he expected to remain with Indiana all season, but he knew the contract he signed last summer, which includes a $23MM team option for 2024/25, made him a candidate to be dealt.
“Did I think I was gonna be [in Indiana] the whole year? Yes,” Brown said. “But obviously, the second year is a team option. But signing the deal I knew it was going to be maybe I stay, maybe they get off the deal. I knew at some point, something would happen. But when the season started I knew something would happen just because of how good [the Pacers] were doing and how they’re trying to maximize [Tyrese Haliburton’s] time there. I was told they weren’t trying to move me, but I was a big part of the deal [for Pascal Siakam], so …”
There’s more from Toronto:
- The Raptors will need to be patient after trading Siakam for what amounts to future assets, observes Blake Murphy of Sportsnet. While Brown has immediate value, there’s no guarantee he’ll be with the organization past the deadline. Jordan Nwora and Kira Lewis provide bench depth, but they’re both young and will need consistent minutes to develop into reliable players. Murphy adds that while the organization isn’t embarking on a traditional rebuilding process, the 2025/26 season is probably the earliest that it will be playoff relevant again.
- RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and OG Anunoby all seem to be in better spots in the wake of last month’s trade with the Knicks, observes Eric Koreen of The Athletic. After the teams met Saturday in New York, Koreen noted that Anunoby’s three-and-D skills fit best on a contender, while Barrett and Quickley can take on a larger role in the offense without having to accommodate Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle.
- Toronto is exploring trades involving Chris Boucher, who is the last player remaining from the 2019 title team, Murphy said on “The Raptors Show” pocdast (Twitter link from Evan Sidery of Forbes Sports).
I would keep Boucher. The one guy that can show off the ring. Keep the last man standing
He’s a star for what he does, absolutely knows his role and plays it perfectly.
Keep Boucher. Trade Brown for Wendal Carter Jr /Brown for Okongwu and Patty Mills.
Why keep Boucher, what is he doing for the Raps currently? He’s billed as a shooting big, but has a 3PT hit rate of .329. He doesn’t do anything else particularly well, so moving him now for absolutely anything should be the plan.
He’s probably worth 2 late 2RPs
He is an energy big more than a shooting big. He creates chaos in his minutes when he is at his best. Of course sometimes that means it doesn’t go well, but other times he can ignite a team with his energy. That is why he is only a bench guy though. If he also shot a consistent 3pt% he would be making way more money and have a very consistent role.
I think there is a balance on how many vets the Raptors trade away. They don’t need to keep them all of course. Boucher has a really good rep though at bringing the team together though. Which is something of value on a young team.
That doesn’t guarantee he is kept but it provides some context on his value to the Raptors. Meaning they move him for something they deem worthwhile. Not just because he makes money next year. This idea that Toronto creates a bunch of cap space is still to be determined. I’m not really sure it would help them all that much. Historically cap space doesn’t serve Toronto well.
Why did OKC keep Nic Collison as long as they did?
He was great at setting screens and a leader. Which is why he works in the FO now.
Boucher isn’t there yet, hopefully he can heal up.
Dennis S and Jacob P for Lowry and Jovic. Young and Porter jr for Wiseman
Bruce Brown to the Knicks for Fournier and their worst 1st rounder. Maybe send Sims since Boucher won’t be playing.