NBA Trade Rumors: Predicting which Toronto Raptors players are most likely to be traded heading into next month’s NBA Trade Deadline.
Over the last few weeks, the intrigue surrounding the Toronto Raptors heading into the NBA Trade Deadline has grown quite a bit. It’s almost as if the perfect storm for a big trade is developing for the Raptors with less than a month before the deadline.
The Raptors have an extremely talented roster that has, for the most part, underwhelmed so far this season. That’s generally the blueprint for a trade. And with one of the most aggressive front offices in the league, at this point, it would be shocking if the Raptors didn’t make a move at the deadline.
The Toronto Raptors may need to make a move at the NBA Trade Deadline to salvage their season
The Raptors are currently outside of the top 10 in the Eastern Conference. Toronto’s roster is too talented to be ranked 11th in the East at this point in the season. While there’s no guarantee that a roster shake-up will solve the team’s issues, it certainly can’t hurt.
And with the rumor mill running rampant, there are plenty of whispers trending toward a possible retooling on the precipice in Toronto. In an attempt to predict how the team will handle the trade deadline, we explore the most likely players that the Raptors could end up moving at the trade deadline.
The surprise trade candidate: Pascal Siakam
If the Toronto Raptors really wanted to make a big splash at the NBA Trade Deadline and throw a wrench on their entire build, Pascal Siakam is likely the player that will be moved. All that said, unless there’s a team that is going to make a historic offer, I would be surprised if this is a move that gets done in the next few weeks.
Despite Toronto’s struggles this season, Siakam is still averaging 26 points, eight rebounds, and six assists on 48 percent shooting from the field and 34 percent shooting from 3-point range. He’s currently the team’s best player and if they were to trade Siakam, we’re talking about something close to a complete rebuild for the Raptors.
One thing to keep in mind, though, is that Siakam will be 29 years old at the end of this season. If the Raptors wanted to pivot away from winning now and focus on starting a build around Scottie Barnes, this is likely a move that would have to take place.
That said, I’m not sure the Raptors are there yet. And if they were to move Siakam, a trade during the offseason would make more sense compared to a rushed deal in-season at the deadline.
The dark horse trade candidate: OG Anunoby
Moving off of Siakam, if the Raptors wanted to keep him but still make a major franchise-altering move, look no further than the team moving OG Anunoby. There have been some whispers surrounding Anunoby regarding a potential trade but it would likely take a huge offer to pry him away from the Raptors.
Anunoby is one of the most underrated two-way stars in the league today and is essentially an expiring contract after next season. If the Raptors show any hesitance in giving him a big-money deal that he’ll likely be seeking during the offseason, they should at least explore his trade market at the deadline.
In his sixth season with the Raptors, Anunoby is averaging 18 points and six rebounds on 47 percent shooting from the field and 37 percent shooting from 3-point range. All that said, Anunoby is still just 25 years old and it would be quite foolish for the Raptors to let him walk.
It seems they are either going to sign him to a huge extension this offseason or they trade him. Maybe they decide to do that now at his year’s trade deadline?
Two most likely trade candidates: Fred VanVleet, Gary Trent Jr.
Despite all the noise that is currently surrounding this team, I still find it hard to believe that they would pull the trigger in-season on such a big move. However, if there are two most likely candidates for the team making a big move it has to be Fred VanVleet and Gary Trent Jr. And there’s an easy reason why.
For one, for as good as both of those players have been for the team, I don’t think anyone views them as core players. VanVleet may have been that in the past, but I think that has passed for the most part. He’s still important to their success but isn’t viewed as untouchable as he was a couple of years ago. And Trent is so new to the team that there was always a chance that the Raptors would move on from him eventually.
And second, they’re both players that could test free agency at the end of the season. Both VanVleet and Trent have player options for next season that they’re probably going to decline.
Is the Raptors’ long-term plan to pay both of them? It’s hard to say one way or another, but if there’s any doubt, Toronto should be doing their due diligence of seeing what their trade value is ahead of the deadline.
If the Raptors are going to make a big move at the trade deadline, it will likely include VanVleet or Trent.