Raptors Off Season Guide

They can only go Up from Here!!!

The 2024-25 Raptors season was tough…I’m not gonna sugar coat it. The writing was on the wall last Summer however when the team did virtually nothing in Free Agency and the bench was full of NBA rookies. Of course that was preceded by Masai hiring a rookie head coach the year before that was entirely focused on developing players. Not just him, his entire staff of assistant coaches as well. So if you didn’t see the wave of rookies coming I don’t know what to tell you. It was planned the day Nick Nurse got fired.

2024-25 Recap

We need to dive deep into everyone on the team and how they performed last year so we can understand what to expect moving forward this Summer and next season. There’s a lot to cover so let’s go…

Ed Rogers / Keith Pelley

Ed Rogers, the new full, soon to be 100% team owner, doesn’t get legal control of Bell’s voting shares until sometime this current Summer when his purchase agreement with Bell goes through. Ed then gets first rights on the remaining 25% with Tannenbaum the Summer of 2026. Despite that, it’s a certainty Bell would have voted their shares almost anyway Rogers wanted after the signed agreement to sell them last Summer, so Ed Rogers has been in Full Control of the Raptors for the entire past season. Where as before Raptor fans had a confusing ownership picture with Larry Tannenbaum being the Board of Governor representative but being out voted by both Rogers and Bell, this last year it was All Rogers. Thus my focus on him directly now.

There can be Only One….

Ed has so far to date continued to let Masai run the team. That’s a surprise given he hired lawyers to stop Masai from getting his current contract and the poor performance of the team. However given Masai’s management group’s solid history at finding draft talent, and that Ed was on the hook for Masai’s contract if he kept him or fired him, probably swayed Rogers to keeping Masai for a clearly down year and in place for the critical 2025 draft selection.

The addition of Brandon Ingram at the trade deadline was a bit of a surprise in NBA circles, as Toronto was largely considered a full on rebuilding team. This move combined with the calmness of Rogers not firing Masai the first second he could smacks of Keith Pelley’s work. If you don’t know Keith well you haven’t been around the Toronto sports scene much cause he’s been around for decades. He’s a hard charging sports management type that likes to win or be on the path to winning so a move to scoop up Ingram on the cheap fits him well. To be honest I suspect Ed now let’s Keith make all the big decisions on the Raptors and everything else in his sports empire as Ed is pretty hands off. I suspect this because Masai wasn’t fired last Summer. Pelley is the type of guy to calculate what a new GM could do and understand not much more than Masai with this group of players so why bother changing.

Ed and Keith had a good year I’d argue. They held fast during a down year as the team rebuilt and developed. A full on new management team, which I argued should have been done previously, likely wouldn’t have moved the needle all that much more this year. So Ownership saved some management money and pushed the team up a couple levels with rookie development and the Ingram addition. A solid year given the lack of wins.

Masai Ujiri

The President of the Raptors held the course steady through very stormy seas and despite a difficult year. There was a point mid-year where the firing of his development head coach seemed days away. Suddenly however the team’s defense turned from bottom 5 in the league to top 5 in the league and the pressure to change course slowly dissipated. I suspect that change started with Masai talking to his coaching staff and reminding them of the Raptors defense first DNA which is non-negotiable. That turned out to be the correct non-move as the rookies all started to look better and the team over performed at the exact WRONG time and cost the team percentage points in the important draft lottery. No matter as rookies over performing is a great problem in the NBA.

Masai’s contract runs until the end of the 2025-26 season so he’s headed into his last season. It’s highly doubtful Rogers extends or resigns Masai so he’ll be looking for a new job around the NBA. President level work is extremely rare to open up and it’s usually kept behind closed doors that someone is coming available soon. The massive change in GM and Head Coach in Denver surprised as Ownership there did NOT reach out and take Masai back. He may have lost some shine as the Championship is a few years old now. Regardless expect to hear Masai’s name pop up around the NBA with knowledgeable people hinting he’s available all next year.

Masai made the decision to keep his ‘All Development’ Euro coaching staff and it wasn’t without criticism. In fact the anon NBA players voted Darko the worst coach in the NBA which wasn’t discussed much around Toronto with it’s controlled media giving him a lot of protection. It’s one thing for me to tell you Darko can’t run an NBA Defense, it’s many levels higher for NBA players to vote him the worst coach. His reputation is known as a ‘players coach’ as well, forming bonds with guys and developing them. So this vote must have really hurt the guy. The question for us is…are the NBA players right?

Darko

The Raptors Rookie Head Coach entered his second year as the boss this year and it showed. He was much more in control of the team from the start and the organization around him much, much smoother. That didn’t lead to great results sadly as the team stumbled early, suffered injuries and collapsed several times into losing streaks that got long enough to worry Head Coaches in the ultra competitive NBA. After losing 8 in a row a Head Coaches job is on the line every night and low effort performances will get them fired sooner than later. Players know that…and they do it on purpose…don’t kid yourselves!

Offense

However Darko’s losses this year weren’t low effort from players losses. They were just his offensive systems not being understood properly, not being played properly, and guys not performing very well. The loss of Quickley hurt more than most analysts understand as he’s the organizing force on many plays. Scottie worked hard to drive the team and did well, but it was a learning year for him in this role and it showed. Darko was forced much of the season to ‘improvise’ as key players were constantly out…and as a very young Head Coach in the NBA that isn’t his strong suit. Thus the offense all year sputtered along, firing well and missing. However the basis of his offensive theory, movement and passing and slashing attacks until a breakdown happens, works well in the NBA. It’s why he kept his job after a hard first year and how he kept his job after this hard year. There is a solid NBA offense inside him that he is learning how to communicate to NBA players. It’s not entirely normal, so the decisions aren’t always the same and you get problems with players picking it up fast enough. Given it’s a full Euro based 5 man system, when 1 guy isn’t on the right page it breaks down fast. This is a common reason NBA teams don’t run European offensive systems despite their clear advantage shown in international play. NBA players don’t spend enough years learning one coaches system.

Defense

Darko gets blamed for a brutal defense the first half of the year despite his letting Delany implement and run the system. It was terrible last year as well and I advocated at a minimum firing Delany last Summer. Darko doubled down, kept Delany, and almost lost his job until a miracle happened. That miracle was a high level talking to the players about Raptors history and winning in the NBA requiring defense. The guy who finally heard and implemented that serious discussion was Scottie Barnes. His defensive play ramped up about 1/3 into the season and really hit full force 2/3 into the season when he became a Problem nightly for NBA teams. To Darko’s credit the entire coaching staff seemed to dedicate themselves to better defense during the season when management ‘read the riot act’ to everyone. The Leadership of Scottie embracing defense and the coaching staff seriously investing in it caused all the rookies to get on board and it quickly became a core part of the team’s identity again. It’s easy for an offensive minded head coach to push his agenda more than the other side of the ball. Only that coaching staff knows what they specifically changed defensively that ignited the long run of solid defense. I think they simplified it enough to let rookies get it better and the team is full of raw rookies. Of course once the ball starts rolling, as in all things in life, it tends to keep rolling. Reguardless people’s jobs were spared and an extremely painful Tank turned into a strange period where fans complained about winning. Such is the NBA.

Scottie Barnes

Scottie ended this season ever so slightly down from his All Star season last year. Given it was his 4th year in the NBA some expected better numbers as ‘development’ tends to happen early in most player careers. And while the numbers don’t say development most people who watched Scottie more than once will probably tell you they feel like he did more this year. He took on a much bigger role in directing the flow of the offense this year, something incredibly hard for any player. Given his ‘pass first’ natural attitude that typically led to him deferring more than most coaches would like their Star player to do. However in Darko’s system it’s a fit and the results were more about the players around Scottie not finishing. So he was doing as asked and doing well at it but the results weren’t there many nights. Improve the players around him and give him more reps at running the offense and the results will start coming.

Defensively Scottie reached another level this year and that is a huge improvement most won’t see in the stats. His mindset changed to where he was the Man expected to make defensive plays now, not someone else like a Vet or other Star. Him. That mindset propelled him to a lot of hard work at his end, something that comes naturally to Barnes. The only thing he hasn’t fully implemented is that NBA physicality yet. Given his size and strength he can use it more to control the play but he’s still letting others control it. He’s such a nice guy and on Defense often you have to be downright mean to be super effective.

RJ

The Maple Mamba played a great season this year in front of his family in Toronto. After the trade home last year RJ played the best of his career and did it again but all year this year. However he did it on a bit worse efficiency which is likely a result of the team around him more so than his play. With less options NBA defenses adapt very quickly and I tend to attribute efficiency drops without other changes largely to other teams keying in on you better. That’s not an RJ problem tho, it’s a team problem. Defensively RJ was never considered a high level defender but he’s laser focused on improving it now. In Toronto sadly he’s mismatched almost every game as a 6’6” solid guy defending up a weight class against PF’s often. So the results aren’t there consistently but the effort is…and that’s the biggest thing about RJ. He gives 100% night in and night out. And while Scottie is the ‘Man’ on this team, RJ is without question the beating Heart that drives effort. Despite his age he pushes everyone around him and drips leadership as he walks around the floor like sweat. When Kyle Lowry left there was this gigantic hole in leadership on this team. Everyone talked about leadership by committee and all that but it’s all talk. RJ has stepped into that leadership role beside Scottie, and that’s the key thing. He’s not pushing to be the leader above Scottie, he’s pushing to be with him. It’s a difference Dennis Schroeder failed miserably at and got blown off the team in a hurry because of. Scottie is the fun leader that works really hard. The Good Cop. RJ is the serious leader that works hard. The Bad Cop. They seem to make a great leadership pair so far as the team has clearly gel’d as friends. I wish Raptor fans started embracing RJ like they did Kyle because you can see he’d literally die for his hometown team the Raptors. Not many players in the NBA would do that. It’s special and it deserves Fan appreciation.

The one nitpik I have with RJ is his free throw percentage. That’s simply is not nearly good enough for an NBA player of his level. It really is simply hard work and reps on the line and I hope he can put in that work and really change this simple part of the game.

IQ

Immanuel had a largely forgettable season this year. He really only played regularly night in and night out for the month of February. The rest of the season he was in and out of the lineup for the most part. That’s a recipe for poor numbers and Quickley’s were down slightly across the board. Very disappointing for the main piece in the OG trade to New York to barely impact the team over an entire year.

However the really scary part, and one you won’t hear any Raptor analysts talking about, is the team’s performance when he was in. During a 6 game run at the start of January with IQ the team lost 5 and only won 1 game. He came out due to injury and the team went on to a 7 win and only 1 loss Super Hot streak!!! While there are a LOT of factors that go into play in that, a big one is IQ being in or out and how the team functioned differently.

The big ‘question’ when trading for Quickley was his adjustment to Starting PG from his previous role at Bench SG. This past season was not a good step ‘forward’ in answering that question. In fact it was a step sideways…and slightly backwards. When you trade for a player and give him a new role there is always this risk that it doesn’t work out. Sometimes it works out great and the GM looks like a genius! To date Quickley hasn’t fully adjusted to the PG role in Toronto. During some games he’ll seem great at it and flowing through attacking and reads great. Other games he’s a bit ‘off’ and getting stopped and knocked off his game. A HUGE part of success in the NBA is Point Guard play, so this coaching staff figuring out how to unlock Immanuel Quickly offensively to his maximum will be critical to success. It won’t be easy because it’s not entirely natural to him yet.

Jak

The Big Man in the Center for the Raptors became a much bigger focus for the offense and contributed his statistically best year in the NBA. Career highs in pts per game and rebounds with higher than average STOCKS showed that his 29 years of age isn’t a problem. He did however play in only 57 games continuing a concerning lower availability trend every year.

The problem with Jak’s season was his efficiency. After a couple years of highly efficient .650+ 2 point shooting Jak dropped down to .628 this year. This shows his number of attempts or ‘ball he got’ was slightly over peak efficiency. A sign that defenses keyed on him more inside and he reached the limits of his skills.

This confirms the player that Jak is for the team. A defense first Center who’ll bring 13 and 9 with 2.5 blks and steals combined. Ok production for a center on a non-playoff team, not enough offensive punch from the paint for the team to seriously contend for a Championship. His performance and numbers have been the same for many years now so this isn’t a surprise to anyone analytically.

BI

Brandon hasn’t played yet for the Raptors, but he’s been meshing with the team ever since the trade and seems to be a welcome teammate in Conga line dances on sidelines. Seriously however, the Pelicans got Brown, Olynyk and a 2026 first from Indy along with a 2031 second round pick for a guy that played in an All Star game. Ingram has averaged MORE scoring than ANYONE on the Raptors each and every year for the past 5 years (except for RJ in 2023-4). Along with that prolific scoring the guy has dished out over 5 assists year after year like a Pez dispenser, feeding families of guys trying to hang on in the NBA. The Raptors resigned him for $40 mil per for 3 years plus a player option which will be declined and too low in year 4 given all the TV money hitting the NBA.

This is one of the most lopsided NBA trades before the Luka stupidity and it likely was a large part of getting the Pels GM fired. Not many teams add a top level self create scoring machine like Brandon Ingram for a few cowboy boots. The impact on the team next year will be very significant. We should see a diverse attack from both wings at key moments of NBA games when all the starters are in playing. Another legit and consistent 3 pt shooter on good volume will create gravity for even more slashing through the paint for everyone. The only problem for Brandon is his turnovers and adaptation to Darko’s pass within the first second you touch it philosophy. Clearly weak pass judgement skills will be rushed by a Euro coach wanting to keep the ball moving at all times. Expect issues.

Dick

Sophmore Gradey took a solid development step forward in his second year with the Raptors. While maintaining a solid .350 shooting percent from deep he up’d his rate of fire from 4 to 6 shots per game. Quality offensive work from a young man with a lot more offensive tools than simply a gun. His other stats all inched up with a bit more rebounding, more passing, more steals and even some blocks. For those that watched him that improvement statistically is no surprise as the guy was moving at high speed and involved in the play more often than not. You stick your nose in everywhere and things are gonna happen!

He started this second year with a clearly beefier body but was still undersized on defense in the NBA. Problem being the Raptors were small overall and he often had matchups that physically were simply bigger. Welcome to the world of NBA coaches always trying to use faster guys and hope they can physically handle the rough stuff. At 29 mins per game this year he’s max’d out his gains by adding more minutes so all the statistical improvement moving forward is going to be playing better. Gradey’s got a lot of tools to do that however so expect more yet again for year 3 especially given the space Ingram is going to provide him.

Ochai

Mr. Agbaji simply put up a Monster year among all the Doom and Gloom of a non-playoff year in Toronto. Not many overage guys that arrive in the NBA at 21 years old take that huge a leap in Year 3 but he sure did and in so many ways it’s worth listing.

• Shot .399 from deep on his highest volume to date after averaging around .325 previously

• Raised his overall eFG% from .505 average previously to an outstanding .593

• Increased his rebounding, assists and steals

• Took on the toughest defensive assignments his coaches could find nightly

No reasonable father could have wanted anything more from Ochai last year…but next year is a new year and not many fathers of NBA players are reasonable. So we expect even more stealing and more passing next year as his defense ramps up and NBA players start having nightmares of lining up next to Ochai on game day. Clearly a defensive gem Masai stole in a recent trade.

Boucher

Another solid performance year from the Slim Duck got shut down far too early by coaches during a contract year for the hungry Montreal kid. His .363 from deep key’d the performance leading to an outstanding .586 eFG% and bump in per game scoring to 10 per game. While putting in statistically about the same 4 out of the past 5 years, this year there was clearly more in the tank that Chris didn’t get to do. That’s likely due to his very low passing rate due to a sky high shooting confidence…and a stealth Tank that he didn’t complain about.

Looking forward Boucher will be a Free Agent trying to get his likely last contract in the NBA. With size and deep shooting he’s got what everyone in the NBA wants. Sadly the Raptors with a pass happy offensive system are about the worst fit if there is such a thing for a player like Chris, which again, everybody in the NBA wants. Statistically his best year came when he was forced to defend the paint much more and played active help defense roles instead of bodying up againt big centers. Wherever he goes he’ll land on his feet and help his team out. A perfect story would keep him in Toronto but this is far from a perfect world more often than not.

Ja’Kobe Walter

This rookie broke into the NBA like most rookies…watching from the bench! He watched for a week, then he played a few minutes each game for a week, then he watched for another 3 weeks. Welcome to the NBA high draft pick!

But Ja’Kobe showed a highly mature basketball game right from Summer league where he confidently moves with purpose to his spots on the floor. No 1/2 out of control wildness that Gradey plays with. Thoughtful progression and careful watching of what defenses are doing. That calculating game style paid off with a season high 27 points in late December against the Houston Rockets in Toronto. Now the Rockets defense is pretty good I’m told, so this game stands out as one of those ‘outlier’ performances. One that makes GM’s and coaches wonder what the future could be for Ja’Kobe.

He’s got a very good shot from almost anywhere on the floor. He moves around nicely offensively. While he clearly was shocked by the size and speed of the NBA he adapted well to it. I expect more scoring next year with more confidence and understanding. I want more getting to the rim and better 2 pt efficiency. Defensively he’s likely to still be average despite ‘good defender’ labels when drafted. Not perfect positioning and footwork to defend ultra fast guards in the NBA. Not enough muscle to fight through screens and be a good defender in the NBA…yet. That’s likely a year 3 or 4 improvement.

Mogbo

Jonathan got a lot of early run as a rookie due to his size and the teams complete lack of size. That didn’t go well as he struggled. Offensively he wasn’t impacting games with little reading and reacting and just trying to run some of the Darko 5 man moving plays was max understanding capacity. Not the rookies fault. Near the end of the year he started to look a little better and put up a few quality games during garbage time of the year where teams don’t give 100% night in and night out.

The key to his good performances seemed to be passing. Some big rebound and big assist games at the end of the year showed the best path moving forward for the 6’9” rookie. An active, paint threatening wing that passes quickly. Get position inside, take the pass and move it fast. The real question is…at 23 years old already and a deep shot that was under .300 what is the future for the young Mogbo??? He’s not big enough for small ball center and he doesn’t have the shooting for solid Wing work. He’s a ‘tweener’, a coaches worst nightmare because he’s got skills and talent but getting it out of him is going to be a challenge. Without a much better 3 ball I don’t see enough that will keep him in the NBA with new rookies arriving each and every year to take his lunch.

Shead

Jamal was the rookie that took the Vet’s spot this year…the natural cycle of the NBA by the way. Management brought in Davion Mitchell to improve the terrible on ball defense from last year. Jamal took his pay cheque and sent him home.

While Davion went on the make the Miami Heat fans very happy they picked him up due to his outstanding defensive work and overall game, Jamal became that beloved rookie by local fans. The power of his work ethic and aggressiveness was honed long before arriving in Toronto, but the battle with Davion set an extremely high bar very early for Jamal. One that he met.

That’s good news if your goal is to be a back up defensive PG in the NBA, but I’m suspecting Jamal wants more. That’s going to be difficult with a .323 deep ball and only occasionally getting to the rim with your speed. Remember the NBA isn’t for kids and being generously listed at 6’ Jamal is about as short as possible in the modern NBA. However the bright light was Shead’s passing which expanded as the year went on. He’s got skills there and in Darko’s system, if he can master it inside and out, Jamal could play the wizard role knowing what’s going to happen before it happens. A critical part of PG work is getting everyone involved so Jamal’s superpower might be found in the guys around him. And Defense. A never ending, in your face All Night style of it.

Battle

In the Battle of overage rookies this year Jamieson beat out the mountain of rookies the Raptors played. Recently turning 24 he played the NBA year at 23. However right from Summer League his shooting stroke caught everyones attention and got his Exhibit 10 contract converted immediately. How this guy slipped through to the Raptors is anyone’s guess. At a legit 6’7” with the wider shoulders those couple extra years bring Battle started getting one on one shooting movement tips from Head Coach Darko in practice. That’s a hell of a step up for a walk on to be getting Head Coaching Love but during the year Jamieson proved he’s a rough gem every NBA Team is looking for. This rookie year he shot .405 from deep on 4.4 attempts per game and with his 6’7” body momma gave him Jamieson is looking at a long and happy career in the NBA. His defense is active and his wheels fast and quick.

The upside on Jamieson is scary. He’s got a few years now to develop his handles and rim attack to complement that deep shot. Passing is something he’ll need to work on. Defensively he’ll pick up the NBA actions and size wise eventually give coaches nice options on defensive matchups as a solid defender with fast feet. He’s the perfect rookie SG with that great fast trigger deep shot and defensively able to match up easily. The biggest problem is his beard and Fro but I’m thinking NBA millions should be able to solve that.

Draft

The 2025 NBA draft is looking to be a historic franchise altering type of draft with multiple players that could turn into Hall of Fame players. That’s a big deal. Sadly the Raptors went on an untimely winning streak late in the year and dropped their lotto odds for a top 3 pick.

While every NBA team will tell you they draft based on talent, they all Lie. They draft for Need just as often. The Raptors have a team hole at Center despite the presence of Jakob Poeltl. His age at 30 next season, with no NBA level back up on the team, leaves the team desperately short at Center. Chomche is the only player on the roster with Center potential, and his entire year in the G league shows that’s exactly what Chomche still is. Potential. So if the Raptors get a top 3 pick they certainly will draft the best talent available. If they get the 7th pick then expect them to hope for the best Center to drop into their lap or reach for the next best Center in the draft.

With their 2nd round pick at #39 (Portland’s pick) the team could draft any position, however the success of several rookies like Shead and Battle give the team an opportunity to take a swing on a big Wing. The NBA is dominated by Wings lately so taking swings on them is simply a smart move at getting an impactful player later in the draft.

Salary Cap

The Raptors move to bring in Brandon Ingram cost them all their hard earned Salary Cap freedom gained in the Pascal Siakam trade. Not a bad thing, but a problem that means careful decisions need to be made with this roster moving forward. As in the NBA you can’t get everything your want, but if you’re careful, you just might get what you need.

From the great Bobby Marks, “Including a likely top-10 pick, Toronto is over the tax and $1.3 million over the first apron. The Raptors can use up to $5.6 million of their non-tax mid-level exception and veteran minimum exception available. They also have the biannual exception, but that would hard cap them at the first apron”. So the Free agency this Summer looks to be dull and boring in Toronto.

Jak extension

The biggest issue for the Raptors this Summer is at Center…and his name is Jak. He’s entering the last year of his contract and will become a UFA next Summer if he wants to because he has a player option for 2026-27. The team would like to lock him up to more affordable years as his play has been effective, but it hasn’t been good enough for more money. That’s the problem. Further he’s getting old and will be 30 this coming season so any extension has to account for that. Large, slow moving centers do NOT tend to age well, so the Raptors have to be really careful here despite fan pressure.

Jak holds all the cards here as Trump would say, so it’s unlikely the Raptors and him come to a reasonable extension unless the Raptors overpay. Anything over $15 mil for an additional 2 years is an overpay and would be impossible to move in trade moving forward. There already is DeAndre Ayton sitting out there with few buyers on a huge contract. If Masai doesn’t cave then this Summer is moving time for Jak who should get traded to a contending team like the Lakers. There is a lot of young talent at Center in the NBA recently so the Raptors could go out and scoop up Williams who the Lakers traded for but then cancelled due to ‘injury’ concerns. The move would allow the Raptors to bring in a Center with a deep threat shot and begin playing some ‘5 Out’ basketball, which is the ultimate end game of Darko’s Euro pass and move system to be honest. Young Centers with potential don’t come cheap so expect a price of Gradey with the team hoping Battle can step up and replace most of what they lost from Mr. Dick.

As you can see, a lot of decision making keys off the decision around Jak this Summer so fans will soon know the immediate team direction. If the team punts the decision to see how the core group plays together with Ingram and let’s Jak make his player option year decision expect a Vet back up center to arrive in Free Agency as Plan B.

Boucher Resign

The Raptors would certainly like to keep Chris Boucher but their salary cap sheet is really full with the Ingram signing. I suspect another NBA team to swoop in and offer Chris a full max MLE of just over $12 million per year for a couple of years. The Raptors will likely be trying to keep Chris at $6 mil per year trying to get under the tax line next year. I know what I’d take as I shook Masai hand goodbye…but Boucher is built differently. Finishing his career in Toronto could mean that much to him. It certainly does to the fans.

I suspect a lot of this discussion has already been had between Boucher and Masai because he was NOT traded at the trade deadline for some more desperately needed assets… so the only unknown is how much money other teams with offer Chris.

Agbaji

Ochai needs to be qualified to extend him and the bill is $6.5 million. If you wondered how powerful contract years can be just look at Ochai’s jump in performance last year…his contract year! Anyway he earned it and the Raptors will very likely extend Ochai for 3 more years at a reasonable price, averaging around $8 million I suspect. I’d like to see management get a team option at a fair price. It’s good value for a hyper athletic defensive guard that can defend Wings nicely. As long as expectations remain reasonable and Ochai remains efficient both sides should be happy.

Temple

The Vet presence Garrett provided was quality work, especially with a young coaching staff that absolutely needed that inside the locker room professionalism. I doubt the Raptors can afford the extra coach that hits their tight Salary Cap so expect the role to move into the coaching staff. While Garrett is unlikely to make that shift the NBA is full of player friendly coaches that can fufil last years Temple role.

Summer Free Agency

Expect very little this Summer out of Toronto…unless Jak did NOT get extended very early in the days news. If that extension doesn’t happen day 1 then Masai and management could pivot hard and fast. Centers with any future upside will get scooped up quickly so they can’t wait around a few days to find out who gets left on the shelf. If the Raptors do wait several days then they are adding a cheap Plan B and will ride out the season with Jak and hope he opts in to another year in Toronto.

The Raptors only have $5 million to spend and are already a Million over the first tax apron, so expecting any significant additions is foolish. In fact a cut from the roster is more likely if the Owner Mr. Rogers has demanded no tax be paid next year. If that happened in the boardroom then expect Agbaji to get shipped out for some draft capital or the Jak trade shake up to happen. The Team could get ‘creative’ like many teams are lately and run the roster short handed much of the year to save a bit of Cap money off the bench warming spot. That seems foolish to me for a development team that needs to uncover some gems and hired a full coaching staff focused on development…but that’s just me.

Summary

The Raptors made a big move in adding Brandon Ingram and despite the terrible season there is a lot of reason for hope next year. The real question is how good can this team be??? It’s not a very easy question to answer with no Ingram play to look at in Toronto and a lot of questions to answer. Predictions for this team should be all over the place even by experienced NBA watchers with so many questions.

Analysis

Brandon Ingram is a legit first option in the NBA. He gets buckets and he doesn’t need much help. For whatever reason he’s never exploded for a year and seems to have levelled off in his career at slightly below All Star levels. That’s something I expect a full year of listening to trade rumors with No teams stepping up to offer him a full Max contract. Now it’s time to prove something to the NBA and he’s got a lot of talent and hard working guys around him to get it done. I expect a personal best season from Brandon but a lot of this might depend on his fit with Quickley.

Even with his ‘average’ season the Raptors are in for a lot more easy work next season simply due to his presence on the floor. But with the emergence of Battle and Dick the Raptors suddenly have a bunch of high level deep shooters that have a little swagger to them now. So guys like Scottie and RJ and IQ should be seeing better efficiencies as they get that extra space and slightly weaker defenders during games. Good news all around!

I expect a 44 win season with 38 losses. If they get a top 3 draft pick that certainly could go higher a bit, but I think the Raptors will find resistance too much to improve more than that next year. Darko despite having 2 years at Head Coach in the NBA is simply not as good as other coaches at winning. Another question I have is Immanuel Quickley’s success on this team. He’s played ok but he was traded for and paid top dollars to play much better and impact winning at the critical PG position. I also find size and physicality up front limited so when the playoffs come around this Raptors team will struggle somewhat more than other teams doing what they like to do. I certainly don’t expect the Raptors to see more than one round in the playoffs.

Defensively Brandon Ingram is NOT going to help this team much…and that’s a problem. Despite the late season great performance this year, I’m still highly skeptical this coaching staff has solved the NBA and implemented a great defense. So while the team has some good defenders in Scottie and Ochai and Shead and even Quickley often with Jak backing them all up…there are just too many young players with poor defensive skills to make up for. Dick, Battle, Mogbo, sometimes RJ just get put into positions where defensively they can’t get it done. I expect the season to end with an understanding that this core group needs to get upgraded defensively and start looking for that answer.

So a good step up for the Raptors but more questions to answer and more challenges ahead as expectation increase for this team. Shout out to you Hard Core Raptor fans that reached here…you’re the ones I do this for!