NBA Trade Rumors: Raptors not willing to include Scottie Barnes in KD package
NBA Trade Rumors: According to a recent report, the Toronto Raptors are not willing to include Scottie Barnes in any package for Kevin Durant.
When it was reported that Kevin Durant had requested a trade from the Brooklyn Nets, it didn’t take long for the Toronto Raptors to come up as a potential landing spot.
Not only because they have a general manager that is willing to take big risks, but also because they have one of the deepest rosters in the league with a couple of rising young stars. One of them just won the NBA’s Rookie of the Year award in Scottie Barnes.
However, at least for now, the Raptors have been unwilling to offer Barnes in any potential package for Durant. In short, if Toronto is able to land Durant, the hope is that they’ll also be able to retain Barnes in the process.
"[via Bleacher Report]Multiple sources with knowledge of the situation say the Raptors are unwilling to part with reigning Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes."
This should not come as a surprising revelation. Barnes is a budding star and has the potential to be a superstar. He’s coming off a sensational rookie season in which he took the league by storm, helping the Raptors get to the postseason.
The sky is the limit for the young Raptor and it would not make much sense to punt away on his future for a 34-yeard-old Durant. On the surface, there are many franchises in the league that would jump on that train.
Many would offer a young prospect even if it was just for 2-3 years of prime KD. Although, I’m not sure that’s the best course of action for this version of the Raptors. Toronto JUST did something similar to that in their acquisition of Kawhi Leonard a few years ago. And it netted them a championship.
Though, they didn’t part ways with a possible future face of the franchise. When they acquired Kawhi, they traded DeMar DeRozan, who was already passed his prime, Jakob Poeltl, and a protected first-round pick.
Next. NBA Trade Rumors: Miami Heat should be willing to gamble on Kyrie Irving. dark
This is a much different situation. The Raptors would be foolish to trade Barnes, even if it does give them the best shot to win a title in the next 2-3 years.