If the Toronto Raptors are serious about making a run for Damian Lillard, we explore what a deal could potentially look like.
With not much traction on a Damian Lillard trade to the Miami Heat, or at least not any substantial reported traction, the door is open for a dark horse or mystery team to jump in on the Lillard sweepstakes. Whether or not any team would be willing to go all-in for Lillard remains to be seen. However, the expectation is that there will be several teams at least making a call to see where the Lillard saga stands.
Over the last few days, there’s been some reporting that would suggest there could be a non-Heat mystery team emerging in the bidding war for Lillard. Piecing together different reports, all signs seem to point to the Toronto Raptors as the potential mystery team for Lillard.
While it’s far from certain that the Raptors are willing to go all-in for Lillard, there are several reasons why they can’t be ignored.
Is a trade the next shoe to drop in the Damian Lillard saga?
It feels like the trade actually happening is the next shoe to drop in the Lillard saga. Whether or not that actually happens remains to be seen. But with less than two weeks before the start of NBA Training Camps, the Blazers are officially on the clock. It’s time for them to make a decision.
If the Raptors are the mystery team and are interested in making a strong offer for Lillard, we explore what that could end up looking like.
Why the Toronto Raptors make sense
In a vacuum, it’s quite easy to see why the Toronto Raptors would make sense for Damian Lillard. And let’s start at the top. We can’t completely predict what a potential trade package for Lillard would look like, but it almost definitely won’t include Pascal Siakam. If the Raptors are going to go all-in for Lillard, it wouldn’t make sense for them to trade away their best player on the roster. The Raptors want to bring in Lillard to play next to Siakam, not in place of him.
And a Lillard-Siakam duo would make a lot of sense for the Raptors. They’d be great fits on the offensive end together and would immediately create one of the better duos in the Eastern Conference. Considering that the Raptors aren’t in a place where they want to rebuild, making a trade for Lillard makes sense.
The big question becomes if the Raptors would want to go all-in for Lillard. Would taking a gamble on Lillard, similar to the way they took a risk by trading for Kawhi Leonard a few years ago, pay off in the same light?
That’s ultimately what they must ask themselves.
What a possible Damian Lillard trade could look like
Let’s be honest here; the Toronto Raptors are not going to trade their best assets for Damian Lillard. If this deal were to come to fruition, it would be due to the Blazers being lowballed by the Heat. That means the Raptors would be able to get in the Lillard game at a bit of a discount. Let’s start with Gary Trent Jr. He’s mostly in this due because of his contract. But he’s still an asset, I suppose, that the Blazers may value. Then there’s Precious Achiuwa, who has developed nicely as a big over the last couple of seasons in Toronto.
Gradey Dick is the team’s first-round pick from the 2023 NBA Draft and would essentially work as additional draft pick compensation. Thaddeus Young and Otto Porter Jr. would have to be included to make the salaries work. The Raptors would also then throw in two and maybe three future first-round picks to sweeten the offer.
I don’t believe the Raptors would be willing to put Scottie Barnes or OG Anunoby on the table. I’d be extremely shocked if they would. And if they did, the deal would probably already be done.
The irony in this all is if that’s the trade offer, it’s very similar to Miami’s. And, quite frankly, you can make the argument that the Heat’s might be better.
Would the Toronto Raptors and Portland Trail Blazers pull the trigger?
This is probably the most difficult question to answer. For both sides, this is not an easy question. There are potential consequences for both the Raptors and Blazers. For Toronto, would they be able to convince Damian Lillard that he can win a championship with the franchise? Would they be getting a motivated and 100 percent locked-in Lillard? You can say Lillard is a professional and he is going to play wherever he is traded, but even if there’s a 1 percent chance that he would be deflated by a trade to Toronto, it may not be worth it in the eyes of the Raptors.
And for the Blazers, the potential repercussions may be greater. Would Portland be willing to accept a trade from the Raptors if it meant ripping up a decade-plus-long relationship with arguably the best player that has ever played for the franchise?
That may ultimately be what it comes down to. If the offers are similar in terms of value, should the Blazers trade Lillard to a place he doesn’t want to be? Should they make that emotional of a decision without thinking of the possible public relations repercussions that could come down the line?
There’s a chance this ends up coming to fruition. And if it did, would the Blazers make the move? Or would cooler heads prevail in all this?