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Raptors Notes: Trent Jr., Deadline Primer, Assets, Tiers

January 20th, 2023 at 5:53pm CST by Rory Maher

Shooting guard Gary Trent Jr. says he’s grateful for the opportunity to earn an expanded role with the Raptors, writes Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. Trent is averaging a career-high 18.5 points per night and boasts solid shooting splits (.438/.360/.831, including a .572 true shooting percentage).

“It’s just a lot of things, factors of being consistent in the NBA,” Trent said. “It’s your role, your opportunity, your coach’s trust. Do they believe in you? Do they run plays for you? Do they put you in certain positions to succeed. Just different type of things. Coach (Nick) Nurse and his team has been there for me. They’ve helped me. Gave me a platform and opportunity of a lifetime.”

Multiple reports over the past month have indicated that Trent is likely to be on the trading block, primarily because he’s expected to turn down his $18.8MM player option for next season to become a free agent. The 24-year-old is aware of the rumors, but he’s no stranger to hearing his name pop up in trade speculation and plans to keep working hard.

“I’ve been in trade rumors since I came into the league,” Trent said, per Hine. “With my contract and my situation, it’s almost complimentary to get off the books or to help a team or roster. But you can’t really focus on that. It is what it is. You continue to work. Somebody’s going to want you. Everybody is watching you, seeing how you work.”

Here’s more on the Raptors:

Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca recently released his in-depth trade deadline primer, including the team’s cap outlook for this season and beyond, player and non-player assets, and more. Murphy suggests the team might “prioritize young, rotation-ready players” rather than draft picks if they deal away Trent or Fred VanVleet, as that would allow Toronto to be more competitive next season.
Doug Smith of The Toronto Star spoke to multiple league sources who ranked the team’s most valuable player assets, in order of their value. OG Anunoby tops the list, followed by VanVleet, Pascal Siakam and Trent. I can sort of see having Anunoby over Siakam because he makes about half as much money and theoretically might be an easier fit on most teams, but having VanVleet over Siakam is…interesting. I assume Scottie Barnes isn’t included because he isn’t expected to be available.
Along those same lines, Eric Koreen of The Athletic breaks the players down into tiers, with Barnes in his own “almost untouchable” category. Anunoby and Siakam are in the “we’d rather not, but give us your best offer and we’ll think about it” tier, while Koreen thinks one of Trent or VanVleet will probably get traded.
At 20-26 and 1.5 games back of the Bulls for the No. 10 seed and the final spot in the play-in tournament, the Raptors don’t have the luxury of resting their best players, argues Dave Feschuk of The Toronto Star. Nurse has been criticized at times for playing the starters heavy minutes, but Feschuk notes that group has been pretty healthy this season.
VanVleet is another player who hears the rumors swirling, Smith writes in another article for The Toronto Star. “The better you play and the better your team does, the lower the chance anybody getting shipped out of here,” VanVleet said. “If you (crap) the bed you set yourself up for anything to happen. So we’ve got to control the controllables.” As Smith notes, the Raptors have been wildly inconsistent this season, and have yet to “control the controllables,” as VanVleet put it, for a sustained period.

Eastern Notes: Barnes, Bol, Kispert, Tucker

January 15th, 2023 at 7:21pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Raptors forward Scottie Barnes, last season’s Rookie of the Year, has sparked the team during its recent upswing, Doug Smith of the Toronto Star notes. Barnes has reached the 20-point mark in three of the last four games. Just as important, he’s been setting up his teammates. He had a combined 22 assists in those outings and is averaging 5.4 assists this month.

“He’s an offense creator and we need him to be that,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. “That doesn’t mean shooting, that means creating shots for others and creating good movement for others.”

We have more from the Eastern Conference:

Magic big man Bol Bol has returned to the rotation after being placed in the league’s health and safety protocols and sitting out five games, Khobi Price of the Orlando Sentinel writes. “I’ve been feeling good so far,” said Bol, who played 18 minutes on Friday. “It’s not as bad as I thought it would be. I feel pretty fine, honestly.”
Wizards forward Corey Kispert has made half of his 3-point attempts over the last seven games and that’s forcing opponents to make adjustments, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. The Knicks limited him to four long-range attempts on Friday because of extra defensive attention. “I feel great, the best I’ve felt in my career shooting the ball for sure. I’m really, really happy with where my jump shot is,” Kispert said.
P.J. Tucker was the Sixers’ biggest offseason acquisition via the free agent market but he’s often benched during the fourth quarter. Tucker admits that the criticism he’s taken has been difficult, considering his limited offensive role, Gina Mizell of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets. “Can you imagine playing 30 minutes and taking one shot? Maybe not shooting at all? And still having to guard the best player and do all the dirty stuff?” Tucker said.

Raptors Notes: Trade Returns, Porter, Barnes, Achiuwa

January 13th, 2023 at 9:40pm CST by Rory Maher

If the Raptors become sellers at the trade deadline, what could they get in exchange for Fred VanVleet or Gary Trent Jr.? How about Pascal Siakam or OG Anunoby? Eric Koreen comes up with hypothetical trades for all four players in a pair of articles for The Athletic, and his colleagues evaluate whether opposing teams would accept them.

Jovan Buha believes the Lakers would agree to a deal for VanVleet if the Raptors wanted Patrick Beverley, Kendrick Nunn, Max Christie and a 2027 first-round pick. As for the team’s All-NBA forward, Joe Vardon thinks the Grizzlies would package Tyus Jones, Danny Green, Jake LaRavia, Ziaire Williams, 2023, 2025 and 2027 first-round picks, a 2024 first-rounder (via Golden State), and a 2024 second-rounder (via Toronto) in exchange for Siakam.

Here’s more on the Raptors:

The Raptors’ current front office has generally drafted well, and they have done exceptionally well in trades, but they have not had success in free agency, and Otto Porter Jr. is the latest example of that, according to Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. Lewenberg points out that the Raptors have operated over the salary cap for several years, which limits their ability to sign pricier free agents, but the list of players the team has signed in the past several years is “uninspiring.” Porter is out for the season after undergoing foot surgery.
Scottie Barnes has had an inconsistent second season, but he’s played better of late, Lewenberg writes for TSN.ca. “He’s just settling in,” Siakam said after Thursday’s 124-114 win over Charlotte. “I see the confidence. He’s not forcing anything, he’s just playing basketball the way that he knows how to and it’s showing. I think that sometimes we get so caught up in the numbers and what people are expecting from [us]. You’ve just got to go out there and play, and I think he’s starting to understand that.” If Toronto is able to turn things around in the second half of the season, Barnes will likely be a big reason why, according to Lewenberg.
Precious Achiuwa missed a significant portion of the season with an ankle injury, but he’s helped stabilize the second unit since he returned to action, per Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. The third-year big man is still working on his conditioning, but head coach Nick Nurse praised his aggression on Thursday. “I really liked the way Precious took the ball to the basket,” Nurse said. “He didn’t get a ton out of it, but that will come. I mean, he got one (foul call), maybe. He got another one where he got clobbered but (didn’t get the call); I like it. If he keeps going in there, he’s going to get rewarded and get a dunk or get to the free-throw line a little bit. I like the aggressiveness.”

Atlantic Notes: Raptors, Toppin, Sims, Durant, Harris, Harden

January 10th, 2023 at 5:25pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Raptors aren’t shopping any of their core players but they’re willing to listen to any offers, Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports writes.

Scottie Barnes remains the Raptors’ only untouchable, though a source told Lewenberg it would take a “king’s ransom” to trade either Pascal Siakam or OG Anunoby. The rotation player most likely to be moved is Gary Trent Jr., since he could become a free agent this summer and his next multi-year contract could top $100MM.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Knicks forward Obi Toppin returned to action on Monday night after missing a month due to a leg injury. Jericho Sims was the odd man out of the rotation, as he never left the bench, Greg Joyce of the New York Post notes. Sims has appeared in 32 of the team’s 41 games this season. Toppin only played eight minutes.
Even before knowing that Kevin Durant would be out for approximately a month, Nets forward Joe Harris said it would be a “massive blow” to the team if he missed significant time, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes. “Obviously [it changes] a lot. He’s a focal point for us, offensively, defensively he’s been an elite rim protector this year. He guards the best players. [It would] be obviously a massive blow for us,” he said. “But at the same time, it presents opportunities for everybody else, and we have a lot of depth for reasons like this for everybody just to step up and collectively try and fill that void.”
Sixers guard James Harden admitted to Yahoo Sports’ Vince Goodwill that he misses the days when he was counted on to be the primary scorer and posted huge stats, but indicated that winning a championship is his top priority. “I would love that, but not as much — if that makes sense,” Harden said. “In Houston, I was doing that every single night. It was expected. It’s a lot of times I feel like I can have that same impact on games. But you see the bigger picture. I’m just focused on one thing, man. That’s all that matters.”

Atlantic Notes: Embiid, Niang, Trent Jr., Barnes, Young

January 9th, 2023 at 9:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Sixers star center Joel Embiid is listed as questionable for Tuesday night’s home game against the Pistons, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets. Embiid has missed the past three games with a sore left foot, including Philadelphia’s road win over Detroit on Sunday. P.J. Tucker is probable with a sinus infection after missing Sunday’s game.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Sixers forward Georges Niang hopes he’ll get an invitation to participate in the 3-point contest on All-Star weekend, according to Pompey. “The three-point contest, obviously, if you’re an NBA fan, you’ve paid attention to it and watched it,” Niang said. “If you ever get a chance to be a part of that, it would be an honor.” Niang is a career 40.7% 3-point shooter and has made 42% of his attempts this season.
It’s no lock that the Raptors will deal Gary Trent Jr. before the trade deadline, Sportsnet’s Michael Grange said on “The Raptors Show.” (video link). After a rough patch, Trent has averaged 25 points per game in his last seven contests. Trent came off the bench for a stretch during a shooting slump. “He’s earned a lot of respect for how he’s handled himself as a pro and you look at his profile, his age, those guys are hard to find,” Grange said. However, Toronto will explore all options. “I don’t think it’s a certainty they’ll trade him. but I think it’s a certainty they’ll listen,” Grange added. Trent has an $18.56MM player option for next season.
Scottie Barnes and Thaddeus Young exchanged words during halftime of the Raptors’ game against Portland. They downplayed the incident, Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports tweets. “It was just a little disagreement. It was nothing serious,” Barnes said. “You have some disagreements but it was nothing serious.” Young said, “We just had a disagreement. No different than brothers going back and forth, especially when we’re both passionate about the game.” (Twitter link).

Eastern Notes: Butler, Barnes, Harris, Simmons

December 25th, 2022 at 9:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Jimmy Butler has dealt with a variety of injuries this season. The Heat forward is frustrated that he can’t consistently stay on the court, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes.

“You know what I’m saying, it’s tough whenever I’m in and out of the lineup so much,” Butler said. “I don’t choose to do that, obviously. But at this point, it’s frustrating. I can only imagine how my teammates feel, how my coaches feel, (Heat president) Pat (Riley) and them feel. But I want to be out there, honestly, because I think that I can help.”

The Heat are listing Butler as questionable to play against Minnesota on Monday due to a right ankle sprain, the team tweets. He has missed 12 games so far this season.

We have more from the Eastern Conference:

Scottie Barnes has not progressed from his strong rookie campaign and the Raptors forward will need to work harder on his game next offseason, according to Doug Smith of the Toronto Star. His statistics haven’t improved and he’s not having the same impact on the game as last season, in part due to a lack of enthusiasm. Barnes has the talent but may have been guilty of resting on his laurels, Smith writes.
Nets forward Joe Harris won’t play against Cleveland on Monday due to left knee soreness, Brian Lewis of the New York Post tweets. Harris also missed Friday’s victory over Milwaukee.
Ben Simmons has sparked the Nets’ defense during their current eight-game winning streak, including a workmanlike performance against Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, Ethan Sears of the New York Post notes. Milwaukee’s franchise player committed seven turnovers with Simmons as the primary defender. “Giannis is the most physical guy in the league, so there’s going to be some questionable (foul calls) there,” Kevin Durant said. “I think he stayed with it all game. Made life tough and I think we all did a solid job of showing him a crowd a little bit, making him kick out and forcing him to turn the ball over. Seven turnovers, so Ben was the catalyst for that.”

Raptors Notes: Trade Deadline, Siakam, Ujiri, Tanking

December 21st, 2022 at 9:54pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Raptors have received phone calls about their core players, multiple sources tell Josh Lewenberg of TSN. And while the front office has been listening to all the trade offers, no deals are close right now.

Rival teams are paying close attention to Toronto, which had lost six straight games before winning in New York tonight. Lewenberg considers everyone except Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes to be available, although it would take a significant offer to land some of the other players. Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet are both All-Stars who are still in their prime, Lewenberg points out, while OG Anunoby is even younger and has become an accomplished two-way player.

Even if the Raptors decide to become sellers, Lewenberg doesn’t expect them to bottom out completely. He notes that the organization has worked hard to build a winning culture and isn’t likely to jeopardize that for a small chance to get one of the top picks in the lottery.

There’s more on the Raptors:

Siakam, who scored 52 points tonight against the Knicks, may be the only thing preventing Toronto from being a definite lottery team, writes Eric Koreen of The Athletic. Koreen considers a Siakam deal to be a sign that the Raptors are “blowing it up,” while a trade of VanVleet or Anunoby wouldn’t be on that level. Siakam understands that the best way to quiet the trade talk is to start winning. “At the end of the day, I don’t care about the schemes or this or that,” he said after Monday’s game. “We’ve just got to win. That’s the only thing. I don’t know the difference compared to (past) groups. I just know this group right now, we’re struggling. It’s really bad. We have to get out of it.”
Team president Masai Ujiri has built a reputation for patience since he took over the Raptors, but that might be tested heading into this season’s trade deadline, suggests Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Grange points out that Ujiri had a two-year plan — last season and this one — to evaluate the players and decide who to build around.
Tanking should be on the table, argues Dave Feschuk of The Toronto Star, because the Raptors don’t have enough talent on their roster to rise above the middle in the East. The primary need, according to Feschuk, is to find someone who can penetrate into the paint and either score or create an open shot for a teammate.

Raptors Notes: Barnes, FVV, Brown, Flynn

December 18th, 2022 at 3:07pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Second-year Raptors forward Scottie Barnes, the reigning Rookie of the Year, has been solid if unspectacular this season for Toronto. Toronto point guard Fred VanVleet spoke at length about the 21-year-old’s development in 2022/23 and his long-term outlook, per Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca (Twitter link).

“I think you guys are waiting for him to hatch into some beautiful butterfly, but again, that’s up to him,” VanVleet said. “It’s our job to try to support him in that and tell him the truth and keep him honest and hold him accountable. But at the end of the day, when he plays great we’re happy for him and when he plays bad we’re there for him. The outside noise is always just noise.

“… He’s a hell of a player,” VanVleet continued. “That’s why everybody is so excited about him, which is why the expectations are so high but it’s good for him. There’s gonna be ups and downs, there’s gonna be challenges, but the magic is in making it through that and persevering and fighting through adversity, and he’s done that.”

Eric Koreen of The Athletic notes that Barnes has been somewhat inconsistent this season for the 13-16 Raptors, and seems at times to be an awkward fit alongside Toronto’s best player, All-NBA big man Pascal Siakam.

Through 26 games this season, the 6’9″ Barnes is averaging 14.9 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 4.7 APG, 0.8 BPG and 0.8 SPG. He is posting solid shooting splits of .482/.309/.737.

There’s more out of Jurassic Park:

After signing a G League contract, veteran NBA swingman Sterling Brown is joining the Raptors’ NBAGL franchise, Raptors 905, reports Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca (via Twitter). Brown still holds intrigue as a high-level shooter. The 27-year-old, a 6’5″ shooting guard out of SMU, has five season of NBA experience under his belt between stints with the Bucks, Rockets and most recently the Mavericks last season. He holds career averages of 5.4 PPG and 3.3 RPG. Brown is also a career 36.4% shooter from long range on 2.6 attempts, which could appeal to a Toronto team in need of help from beyond the arc. As of this writing, the Raptors rank 29th in the league with a 32.4% three-point conversion rate and 22nd in attempts at 31.7 per game.
Though a sound, versatile defensive unit, the Raptors have struggled on the other end of the floor. When Malachi Flynn was pressed into starting service due to the injury absence of Gary Trent Jr., in an eventual 119-116 loss to the Nets Friday night, he and VanVleet looked like a potent scoring pair, opines Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. Against Brooklyn, Flynn scored 13 points while VanVleet poured in 39. Smith notes that the two guards, both listed at 6’1″, cumulatively went 6-for-14 from long range. Flynn has been nailing 37.6% of his modest 2.5 treys a night. “(If) we can keep finding ways to be effective defensively — I think that’s the number one concern from the coaching staff with both of us out there,” VanVleet said. “I thought we found ways (Friday) and found lineups that can make it work. He was a huge spark plug in making shots, just creating things, and just having another guy that can get in the paint and make plays.”
In case you missed it, Raptors defensive stalwart OG Anunoby is set to miss at least a week as a result of a sore left hip.

Raptors Notes: Core, Trade Options, Poeltl, Shooting Woes

December 14th, 2022 at 8:00am CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors remain high on their core of Pascal Siakam, Scottie Barnes, Fred VanVleet, and OG Anunoby and believe that quartet is a strong foundation for an elite team, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca.

If the front office is sincere in that belief, it would make sense to aggressively seek out an upgrade on the trade market prior to this season’s deadline to complement those core players, perhaps using a future draft pick or two, Grange argues.

Grange points to Spurs center (and former Raptor) Jakob Poeltl as an ideal target for Toronto, based on his ability to protect the rim on defense and finish at the rim on offense. Poeltl is also on an expiring contract and has full Bird rights, making him a logical option for the Raptors, who want to maintain their cap flexibility while having the ability to invest in a player they like. Given Toronto’s shooting woes, the team could also talk to San Antonio about veteran forward Doug McDermott, Grange notes.

Here’s more on the Raptors:

Within his Sportsnet.ca story linked above, Grange says the Raptors are believed to be making calls with “some more urgency than would otherwise be expected from a management group that tries to keep things low key.”
The Raptors are one of the NBA’s lowest-ranked teams in terms of both three-pointers per game (25th) and three-point percentage (26th), prompting Eric Koreen of The Athletic to explore what they can do address their shooting woes. While it would help if certain players – like VanVleet, Anunoby, Gary Trent Jr. – bumped their three-point rates to their career averages, acquiring another shooter should also be something the team seriously considers, as Koreen outlines.
Despite falling below .500 following two ugly losses in Orlando, the Raptors remain optimistic that better days are ahead, writes Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. “We can’t hit the panic button. I know that a lot of people do hit that panic button real quick but (we’re) not doing that,” Siakam said. “… There’s no finger pointing. We’re all in this together. No matter what’s happening, those guys in here, I love them and I want everyone to succeed, I want us to succeed as a team. I think we’ve all got to do it together. Everyone’s in this together and we’ve gotta get out of it together.”
In case you missed it, we passed along a series of injury updates on Raptors frontcourt players on Tuesday.

Atlantic Notes: Raptors, Barnes, Celtics, Simmons

December 9th, 2022 at 9:30am CST by Luke Adams

Rival executives are keeping a close eye this season on the Raptors, according to ESPN’s Zach Lowe (Insider link), who says those execs are “bracing for fireworks” if Toronto is still right around .500 as February’s trade deadline approaches. The club is currently 13-12.

As Lowe lays out, rival teams are uncertain about whether the Raptors intend to stick with forwards Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, and Scottie Barnes long-term or if they’d eventually be open to moving one of them. There’s also a question about whether Fred VanVleet, who can become an unrestricted free agent in 2023, fits the vision of a team that is primarily made up of longer, more versatile athletes.

Raptors president Masai Ujiri has shown a willingness to shake things up in the past rather than settling for being a middle-of-the-road playoff contender, most memorably trading for Kawhi Leonard in 2018. Rival executives are curious to see whether how long he’ll be content to wait out the current group if it doesn’t take a major step forward, per Lowe.

Here are a few more notes from around the Atlantic:

Raptors fans frustrated by Scottie Barnes‘ up-and-down play this fall following his Rookie of the Year campaign last season should look to the evolution of Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown for reassurance, says Eric Koreen of The Athletic. As Koreen observes, Tatum was less effective in his second season than his first, while Brown took a minor step backward in his third year, a reminder that a top prospect’s development isn’t always linear.
Revamping the offense after its struggles in last season’s NBA Finals was a primary focus all offseason for Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla, even before he was promoted to replace Ime Udoka, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN. Some tweaks from the coaching staff and some personnel changes have helped turn Boston’s offense into the NBA’s best. According to Bontemps, the Celtics’ 120.8 points per game would be the highest average by any team in nearly 30 years, while the team’s 62.6 true shooting percentage would be an NBA record.
As expected, Nets swingman Ben Simmons is set to make his return from a calf strain on Friday following a four-game absence. He’s not listed on Brooklyn’s injury report for the game vs. Atlanta, notes Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link).