Toronto Raptors Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Atlantic Notes: VanVleet, R. Williams, Harrell, Reed, Thybulle

January 9th, 2023 at 11:59am CST by Arthur Hill

Fred VanVleet‘s extension talks with the Raptors are on hold, but he indicated Sunday that he hopes to reach a long-term deal to stay in Toronto, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN. VanVleet confirmed to reporters that he and the team had discussions about a four-year, $114MM extension before the start of the season, but they made a mutual decision to wait. A new deal can be reached any time up to June 30 if he turns down his player option for 2023/24.

“Without going too far into it … [I’m] just trying to put myself in a good position business-wise, and not take an extension on a deal that was made three or four years ago,” VanVleet said.“I felt like I’ve outplayed that contract thus far. So just trying to get myself in a position to put the cards in their hands. They got to make a decision from an organization standpoint. I love being here. I love being a Raptor. I got a great relationship with (team president) Masai (Ujiri) and (general manager) Bobby (Webster), so I’m confident that we could find (a deal). It’s a great partnership that we have, so going forward, I’m not going to make it easy on them and they’re not going to make it on me either, and that’s the way it’s going.”

VanVleet’s comments are contained in a story on why Toronto might be active ahead of the trade deadline following a disappointing 17-23 start. An Eastern Conference executive told Bontemps that the Raptors will have “plenty of interest” in their top players if they decide to make them available.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Celtics center Robert Williams has only averaged 19.4 minutes in nine games since returning from knee surgery, but he’s making enough of an impact that coach Joe Mazzulla will have to consider making him a starter again, contends Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Williams is averaging 7.9 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in that limited time, and Boston has been more effective when he’s been on the court. “Whether he starts or comes off the bench, just want him on the floor, want him healthy,” Jayson Tatum said. “Want to be on the floor with him at the same time as much as possible. I’m going to start, so I’d like Rob to start. But whatever is best for the team, he’ll do that.”
With Joel Embiid still sidelined, Sixers backup centers Montrezl Harrell and Paul Reed combined for 36 points Sunday as both made a strong case for more playing time, notes Kyle Neubeck of The Philly Voice. Neubeck believes Harrell is in a better position to get consistent minutes once Embiid returns, but says questions persist about his ability to protect the rim.
Matisse Thybulle went through two stretches where he wasn’t part of the Sixers‘ rotation this season, but he’s been showing his defensive value lately, observes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Thybulle had five steals Sunday against the Pistons, and Tyrese Maxey said, “At this point, I think they were just passing it to him.”

Stein’s Latest: Raptors, Hardaway, Clarkson, Turner

January 9th, 2023 at 8:06am CST by Arthur Hill

The Raptors appear unlikely to tear down the foundation of their team before the trade deadline, Marc Stein writes in his latest Substack column. Sources tell Stein that Toronto is open to parting with Gary Trent Jr., who has an $18.56MM player option for next season and could be headed for free agency, but it would take a significant offer to pry away OG Anunoby or Pascal Siakam.

The player to watch might be Fred VanVleet, according to Stein. VanVleet reportedly received a four-year, $114MM extension offer before the start of the season, and he and the team decided to delay any further extension talks. Stein believes that if the Raptors keep VanVleet past the deadline, it’s an indication that they plan to commit to a longer deal.

Toronto has slipped into a tie for 11th in the East at 17-23 and could be headed for a spot in the lottery. A source indicated to Stein that the team might be content with taking a shot at Victor Wembanyama or another elite draft prize rather than trying to reconfigure its roster on the trade market.

There’s more from Stein with the deadline just one month away:

The Mavericks are making Tim Hardaway Jr. available, and the Cavaliers can get him if they’re willing to take on his contract, which has two years remaining at a total of $34.1MM. Stein points out that Hardaway has been shooting much better since moving into the starting lineup, which would make him a valuable asset for a Cleveland team that’s in the race for the best record in the East. Caris LeVert‘s expiring $18.8MM contract is an easy way for the Cavs to match Hardaway’s current $19.6MM salary, Stein notes.
After reporting on Saturday that Jordan Clarkson turned down an extension offer from the Jazz, Stein clarifies that he doesn’t expect the shooting guard to be traded. Stein explains that Clarkson is significantly underpaid at $13.3MM with a $14.3MM player option for 2023/24, and CBA rules limit what Utah can offer him before the current season ends. Stein hears that Clarkson wants an annual salary in the $18-20MM range, and the Jazz appear willing to give him that when they’re able to.
The Pacers are in a much better position to work out an in-season extension with Myles Turner, since they can restructure his current-year salary up until a March 1 deadline, Stein adds. He says the team has discussed an extension with Turner’s representatives, but they haven’t been able to reach an agreement.

VanVleet Had Four-Year Extension Offer

January 8th, 2023 at 10:03pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Raptors offered guard Fred VanVleet a four-year, $114MM extension prior to the season and it was never formally “rejected,” a source told Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca (Twitter link). Instead, the two sides mutually decided to wait, with no specific deadline set.

Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports was the first to report the Raptors’ extension offer. VanVleet can become a free agent this summer if he declines his $22,824,074 option.

Cavaliers Eyeing Tim Hardaway Jr.

January 8th, 2023 at 11:00am CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers have interest in Mavericks wing Tim Hardaway Jr., Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com said during an appearance on Jake Fischer’s Please Don’t Aggregate This podcast. Fedor identified Hardaway as a possible target for Cleveland after Fischer discussed the team’s interest in Pistons forward Bojan Bogdanovic.

“I would add another name,” Fedor said (hat tip to HoopsHype). “The Cavs believe this player is available, and my sources tell me that he could be had. It’s, again, at the right price. And it’s a little bit tricky, because he’s on a team that’s fourth place currently in the Western Conference.

“Tim Hardaway Jr. is somebody that the Cavs have been watching and they’ve been keeping an eye on. And I think if the Cavs had their choice, it would be very, very close. And they’re not going to have their choice, it doesn’t work that way, but if they had their choice, it would be between Bojan and Tim Hardaway Jr.”

The Cavaliers have two All-Stars (Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell) in their backcourt, with All-Star center Jarrett Allen and last year’s No. 3 overall pick Evan Mobley up front. The small forward spot is the only one in the starting five that remains a question mark, with players like Caris LeVert, Isaac Okoro, Lamar Stevens, and Dean Wade cycling through it this season.

Fischer, having reported earlier this week that the Cavs are in the market for a defensive-minded wing who is also an outside shooting threat, likes the idea of Hardway for Cleveland, especially since LeVert would probably have to be included in a hypothetical trade (his $18MM+ salary is within $1MM of Hardaway’s). The Mavs kicked the tires on LeVert before Cleveland acquired him from Indiana a year ago, according to Fischer, who also suggested that Dallas has been seeking another shot creator to complement Luka Doncic.

Fedor believes a trade centered around Hardaway and LeVert would be a “logical stylistic swap,” though he acknowledged that there could be some obstacles. Hardaway is under contract for two seasons beyond this one, so the Cavs may be reluctant to make that sort of commitment before seeing how he fits (LeVert is on an expiring deal). Both Fischer and Fedor also agreed that the Cavs may want an extra asset as opposed to making a one-for-one trade.

Here are a few more Cavs-related notes from the podcast:

“I’ve been told that the Cavs are not going to trade Isaac unless they get a significant piece back in return,” Fedor stated, referring to Okoro. Fedor initially said he’s not quite sure what sort of player would fit that profile, but agreed with Fischer when he suggested Raptors forward OG Anunoby. It’s difficult to imagine the Cavaliers having enough ammo to land Anunoby even if they were willing to include Okoro, since they can’t currently trade any of their future first-round picks.
The Cavaliers are about $2.5MM below the luxury tax threshold and are unwilling to go into the tax this season, per Fedor. That will be a factor to watch as Cleveland consider possible deals.
Neither Fischer nor Fedor gets the sense that Suns forward Jae Crowder is a target for the Cavaliers, and Fedor said he also heard that the club is “not all that interested” in Magic wing Terrence Ross.
The Cavs won’t make a trade just to make one, Fedor said, adding that some people within the organization want to see what it looks like if Wade gets an extended shot at the starting small forward job. Wade made nine starts earlier in the season, but has been out since December 2 due to a shoulder injury.

Stein’s Latest: Bogdanovic, Gordon, Oubre, Turner, Clarkson

January 7th, 2023 at 11:50am CST by Luke Adams

Pistons forward Bojan Bogdanovic may not be the biggest-name player to change teams prior to the February 9 trade deadline, but he seems to be the one who is the most in demand at this point, Marc Stein writes in his latest Substack story.

According to Stein, the list of clubs with interest in Bogdanovic has reached double digits, even though the Pistons have been telling teams for weeks that they’d prefer not to trade their top scorer.

Although they’ve expressed reluctance to move Bogdanovic, the Pistons have also been conveying that if they do have a change of heart, the asking price would be at least an unprotected first-round pick, says Stein. A previous report suggested Detroit would seek a first-round pick plus at least one more asset. Bogdanovic’s potential suitors are hoping that the Pistons’ apparent hesitation to move the 33-year-old is a negotiating ploy and that the price will drop as the deadline nears, per Stein.

Here’s more from Stein’s latest rumor round-up:

Two teams have told Stein recently that the Rockets‘ asking price for Eric Gordon is similar to what the Pistons have sought for Bogdanovic. While Houston may be trying to get an unprotected first-round pick for Gordon, the club probably knows it won’t get that sort of return, according to Stein, who views it as an example of just how high prices are in general with over a month to go until the deadline and few sellers on the market.
The Cavaliers, Suns, and Raptors were among the teams thought to have some trade interest in Hornets wing Kelly Oubre before he underwent surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left hand, Stein writes.
According to Stein, Pacers big man Myles Turner and Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson have so far rebuffed extension offers from their respective teams. Stein doesn’t expect Utah to trade Clarkson even if no extension is in place by February 9, but is less sure about Indiana’s plans with Turner.

Eastern Notes: Hornets, Magic, Middleton, Fields, Raptors

January 7th, 2023 at 11:12am CST by Luke Adams

The Hornets and Magic are among the seemingly lottery-bound teams who have yet to show much aggressiveness in trade discussions involving veterans, multiple sources tell Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report.

“One of the unintended consequences of the play-in tournament is a chilling of the trade market,” one Eastern Conference executive told Pincus. “When almost the whole league can make the (play-in), you just don’t have as many sellers in December or January. End of the month, we’ll see more action leading into February.”

According to Pincus, the fact that virtually no teams are attempting to create cap room for the summer of 2023 could also be a factor in slowing down the in-season trade market.

“Nobody wants cap space this summer,” a Western Conference executive said. “The really bad teams are so bad, they can keep their (quality veterans) too. There aren’t any fire sales like we saw last year with Portland, but (even) that was for the purpose of retooling.”

While it’s true that we haven’t seen much action yet, we still have more than a month until the February 9 trade deadline arrives, so it’s too early to draw too many conclusions about this season’s market — I expect more sellers to emerge in the coming weeks and plenty of trades to be made as the deadline gets closer.

Here’s more from around the East:

Khris Middleton will accompany the Bucks on their four-game road trip that begins on Monday in New York, but head coach Mike Budenholzer was noncommittal when asked if the star forward would play at all during the trip, which runs through next Saturday. Asked if there was any concern that Middleton’s right knee soreness might be an issue that requires surgery, Budenholzer simply replied, “No” (Twitter links via Eric Nehm of The Athletic).
At age 34, Hawks general manager Landry Fields is one of the youngest heads of basketball operations in the NBA, but his rise through the front office ranks at such a young age became possible only because his playing career ended prematurely, as Howie Kussoy of The New York Post (subscription required) writes in a feature on the former Knicks wing. “I look back and I’m super proud of the fact that I was able to get to the NBA and experience some of that NBA success, Fields said. “… But there’s also this sadness to it. I was really thinking there’d be so much more. I thought there’d be 10-plus years in the NBA.”
The player development magic that has helped make the Raptors successful in the past has vanished this season, writes Eric Koreen of The Athletic. The team doesn’t have enough reliable rotation players to complement its top guys and has had to rely too heavily on its starters, as Koreen and Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca observe.
While some of those top Raptors players, such as Fred VanVleet, are seemingly having down years, Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca argues that the Raptors have failed VanVleet more than he has failed the team — the former All-Star point guard has had to carry too substantial a workload due to Toronto’s lack of solid backcourt depth.

Raptors Sign Joe Wieskamp To 10-Day Contract

January 7th, 2023 at 9:31am CST by Luke Adams

JANUARY 7: The Raptors have officially signed Wieskamp to a 10-day contract, the team announced today in a press release. The deal will run through January 16, covering Toronto’s next five games.

JANUARY 6: The Raptors are signing free agent swingman Joe Wieskamp to a 10-day contract, agents Kyle McAlarney and Mark Bartelstein tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Wieskamp, 23, was drafted 41st overall in 2021 by the Spurs and spent most of his rookie season on a two-way contract with the team. The 6’6″ wing was converted to a rest-of-season standard contract in March, then re-signed with San Antonio in August on a two-year deal that included a guaranteed $2.175MM salary for 2022/23. However, he was the victim of a roster crunch and was waived by the Spurs in October just before the regular season tipped off.

A former Iowa standout, Wieskamp appeared in 29 games for the Spurs in his first pro season, playing a very limited role for the NBA club. He averaged 2.1 PPG and 0.5 RPG in 7.1 MPG.

Wieskamp has seen more of the court at the G League level in the last two seasons. After playing for the Austin Spurs in 2021/22, he was the second overall pick in this season’s NBAGL draft and has spent this season with the Wisconsin Herd, Milwaukee’s affiliate. In 11 Showcase Cup games for the Herd (28.5 MPG), he averaged 17.0 PPG and 5.9 RPG on .504/.406/.842 shooting.

The Raptors won’t need to make a roster move to clear space for Wieskamp, since they have an opening on their 15-man squad after waiving Justin Champagnie last week.

Scotto’s Latest: LaVine, Mavs, Heat, Dort, Raptors

January 6th, 2023 at 4:32pm CST by Luke Adams

Rival executives believe the Knicks, Mavericks, Lakers, and Heat would be among the most likely suitors for Zach LaVine if the Bulls were to make him available prior to this season’s February 9 trade deadline, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype said on the latest episode of HoopsHype’s podcast. However, with Chicago still hanging onto the 10th seed in the East despite a disappointing first half (17-21), there’s no indication that the team is on the verge of becoming a seller.

Here’s more from Scotto:

The Mavericks owe their 2023 first-round pick to New York, but control all their future picks and could theoretically move one or more at the trade deadline. However, Scotto has heard the Mavs will be reluctant to give up a first-rounder unless it’s for a player they believe can help make them a title contender this season.
Rival executives are keeping a close eye on the Heat as a team that may be active before the deadline, says Scotto. After finishing with the East’s best record in 2021/22, Miami is just 20-19 so far this season and holds the No. 8 seed. The team never really replaced P.J. Tucker after he departed in free agency and should have some tradable contracts, especially after Victor Oladipo and Dewayne Dedmon become movable on January 15 (though Oladipo will have veto power).
Luguentz Dort is another player who will become trade-eligible on January 15, but don’t expect him to be mentioned in any rumors this season, according to Scotto, who says the Thunder view him as a part of the team’s long-term future alongside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Some people around the league believe the Raptors will be more active in trade talks beginning in mid-January, Scotto says. Toronto may have a better sense by then of which direction the team’s season is headed.

Eastern Rumors: Bucks, Bogdanovic, Raptors, Wizards, Hampton

January 6th, 2023 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

Although the Bucks are tied for the NBA’s second-best record, they’re in the bottom five in offensive rating, having relied on one of the league’s best defenses during their strong first half. As they look to upgrade their offense, they’re expected to be in the market for help on the wing at the trade deadline, according to Matt Moore of ActionNetwork.com.

The Bucks, Suns, and Rockets reportedly discussed a three-team trade involving Jae Crowder, but it didn’t get done because Houston wanted more draft compensation than Milwaukee and Phoenix were willing to offer. Some league sources who spoke to Moore suggested they wouldn’t be surprised to see the three teams return to that framework and eventually get something done.

Pistons forward Bojan Bogdanovic is another player who is on the Bucks’ radar, per Moore, and he’d certainly provide the club’s offense with a boost. However, Detroit doesn’t appear eager to move Bogdanovic, Moore adds. Jake Fischer reported earlier this week that the Pistons are believed to be seeking a first-round pick, plus additional draft assets or a young player with upside.

Here are a few more rumors from around the Eastern Conference:

Sources who have spoken to Moore have indicated that the Raptors are willing to discuss a variety of players but have been seeking a substantial return for their potential trade candidates. Moore says the words “insane,” “astronomical,” and “far-fetched” have been used by his sources to describe Toronto’s asking prices. He adds that the price for OG Anunoby is believed to be higher than it was in the offseason, when the Raptors were reportedly seeking a top-10 pick.
Although there has been some trade speculation this season centered on Wizards guard Bradley Beal and especially forward Kyle Kuzma, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype has heard that the front office would like to build around Beal, Kuzma, and Kristaps Porzingis long-term and would ideally find a fourth core player to complement that trio.
As he did last month, Magic wing R.J. Hampton requested and was granted an assignment to the G League in order to get more playing time, reports Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel. Hampton played a couple games with the Lakeland Magic last month before returning to Orlando, but has been a DNP-CD in four of eight contests since then and logged more than five minutes just once.

Source To Grange: "Toronto Could Set The (Trade) Market"

January 4th, 2023 at 7:58am CST by Luke Adams

Given the talent on the Raptors‘ roster, potential buyers around the NBA are keeping a close eye on Toronto and may be reluctant to move forward on other deals until they see if the Raptors will be sellers, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. “Toronto are the first domino,” a league source who has been monitoring the Raptors told Grange. “What they do will affect teams all across the league: Dallas, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Atlanta – not that it’s about deals with any particular team, just that people are going to be waiting to see what the Raptors do before they make their moves. Toronto could set the market.”