Community Shootaround: Raptors’ Offseason
The Raptors find themselves at a significant crossroads this offseason, with a variety of decisions to make about the direction of their roster in the short- and long-term.
Toronto’s first priority, of course, is finding a new head coach. The club let Nick Nurse go after a five-year run, during which he led the franchise to its first-ever NBA title in 2019. He was named the league’s Coach of the Year in 2020.
More recently, the team finished the 2022/23 season with a 41-41 record and the ninth seed in the East. The Raptors were quickly ousted from the postseason by the Bulls in a play-in game.
Toronto has already interviewed several candidates for the opening, and is pondering several others, per our tracker. The Raptors have spoken with – or is expected to talk to – Bucks assistant Charles Lee, Kings associate head coach Jordi Fernandez, Suns assistant Kevin Young, Spurs assistant Mitch Johnson, Grizzlies assistant Darko Rajakovic, former Nets head coach Steve Nash, Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson, Heat assistant Chris Quinn, Nuggets assistant David Adelman, player-turned-ESPN analyst JJ Redick, and Virtus Bologna head coach Sergio Scariolo.
Toronto has also been linked to former Suns head coach Monty Williams, Williams’ former Phoenix assistant Patrick Mutombo, and Vanderbilt head coach Jerry Stackhouse. While the club had informal conversations with Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon, it is unlikely Hammon is ready to move on from her current gig just yet. The Raptors also spoke with Nurse’s former assistant coach, Adrian Griffin, though it has been reported that the Bucks plan to hire Griffin as their new head coach.
Nurse, meanwhile, is currently in the running to fill the head coaching vacancies of the Sixers or Suns.
At present, the Raptors are still fielding several veteran players from their championship run, including All-Star power forward Pascal Siakam, 2022 All-Star point guard Fred VanVleet, and 3-and-D swingman OG Anunoby. The team’s most important player, however, might be 2022 Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes, who regressed a bit during his sophomore season. The 6’9″ forward out of Florida State didn’t evolve much as a ball-handler or scorer this year, while his defense plateaued.
In terms of potential free agents, center Jakob Poeltl will be unrestricted, while guards VanVleet and Gary Trent Jr. both have player options for next season. Veteran reserve forward Thaddeus Young, who averaged just 14.7 MPG off the bench this year, has an $8MM contract for next season that is only partially guaranteed for $1MM. The direction the Raptors ultimately opt to take could dictate what the team decides to do with Young’s money, though he probably wouldn’t command nearly that much coin in free agency at this point.
Given that the NBA is poised to have a fairly light free agent class, especially in terms of guards, both VanVleet and Trent seem to be in line for lucrative new deals somewhere. VanVleet’s option for next season is worth $22.8MM, while Trent’s would pay a guaranteed $18.6MM, plus $250K in unlikely contract incentives. As an experienced championship playmaker in his NBA prime, VanVleet should have a robust market, while Trent is a solid veteran floor spacer. Would Toronto want to re-sign both players to new long-term contracts, or try to coordinate sign-and-trades for one or both?
The 29-year-old Siakam is in the final season of a four-year, $136.9MM maximum extension he signed with Toronto during the 2020 offseason, and is now eligible for his next extension.
Should Toronto opt to ultimately rebuild its roster and prioritize its youth, it would find plenty of suitors for the contracts of Siakam and Anunoby.
The Raptors have a late lottery pick, No. 13 in this year’s draft, at their disposal, with which team president Masai Ujiri can add more young talent under long-term team control. A deal to offload Siakam or Anunoby, or perhaps VanVleet in a sign-and-trade, could probably get Toronto an even better lottery selection this year.
Trying to simultaneously compete with veterans while also developing youth, in the form of Barnes and this new lottery pick, is a difficult line to thread. The Warriors have found some some success with their “two timelines” approach, though several of their young role players failed to take next steps in their growth this season. Toronto obviously has had mixed success thus far in this department. Would the club be open to trying again?
We want to know what you think. What should the Raptors do this offseason? Which head coach among their finalists should they hire? Should they build around Siakam and/or Barnes? Head to the comments section to share your thoughts.
Pacific Notes: Ishbia, Suns, Clippers, Lakers
New Suns owner Mat Ishbia‘s swift, decisive decision making thus far with Phoenix could impact how his coaching candidates view the gig, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic.
As Rankin notes, within 12 hours of Ishbia assuming control over the franchise, the team had already made a massive deal, acquiring forwards Kevin Durant and T.J. Warren from the Nets for young talents Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson, along with several draft picks.
Ishbia also was quick to move on from head coach Monty Williams, who possessed a 194-115 regular season record with the club, just two years removed from an NBA Finals berth.
At present, Ishbia is something of a wild card as an owner, which could give some of the finalists for the head coaching vacancy pause.
There’s more out of the Pacific Division:
- The Suns and the Phoenix Mercury, the WNBA team Ishbia also purchased, have made formal bids to host future All-Star Games, Rankin writes in a separate piece. “We’re excited to partner with the city of Phoenix to engage the NBA and WNBA to bring both All-Star Games to the Valley,” Ishbia said. “Phoenix is one of the great basketball cities in the world and the perfect place to bring together the players and fans to celebrate the sport. The Phoenix Suns and Mercury want to continue finding new and important ways to partner with the city to bring real impact to our community.”
- With one of their top front office lieutenants gone, the Clippers face several looming offseason decisions, writes Law Murray of The Athletic. Former Los Angeles GM Michael Winger departed the team to run the Wizards. As Murray notes, 2023/24 marks the final season with injury-prone stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George on guaranteed deals, as both players hold options for the 2024/25 season. Murray wonders if Clippers team president Lawrence Frank will opt to extend Leonard, George, or head coach Tyronn Lue.
- Though the Lakers could theoretically make a run for the services of Mavericks All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving in free agency or Hawks point guard Trae Young via trade, Mark Medina of The Sporting Tribune believes the club should prioritize roster continuity over splashy names.
Pacific Notes: Curry, Ranadive, Suns, Frank
All-Star Warriors point guard Stephen Curry has been named the league’s 2022-23 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion, the NBA has announced in a press release.
Curry’s efforts in the social justice sphere of late include promoting voting initiatives and building awareness about community safety. He and his wife Ayesha Curry run a non-profit, Eat. Learn. Play., focused on ensuring nutritious foods be provided to children in underserved Oakland communities. Curry also runs a lifestyle brand, UNDERRATED, and Unanimous Media, a multimedia company, which are designed to create opportunities for underrepresented athletes and creators, respectively.
As a condition of Curry’s win this year, the NBA will donate $100K to the social justice cause of Curry’s choosing, the University of San Francisco Institute for Nonviolence and Social Justice.
Grizzlies big man Jaren Jackson Jr., Spurs reserve point guard Tre Jones, Suns starting point guard Chris Paul and Celtics power forward Grant Williams were the other four finalists for the award. All will earn $25K from the league, to be donated to the charity of their choosing.
There’s more out of the Pacific Division:
- Kings majority owner Vivek Ranadive was among seven finalists bidding for NHL club the Ottawa Senators, but has since fallen out of the running, per Randy Diamond of The Sacramento Bee. Each of the seven finalists had reportedly been proposing purchase prices north of $800MM. Ranadive’s ownership group bought Sacramento a decade ago for $533MM. The club’s valuation is currently estimated at $2.5 billion.
- The Suns’ interviews for their head coaching vacancy might conclude this weekend, reports John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM Phoenix (Twitter link). Former Raptors head coach Nick Nurse and Kings associate head coach Jordi Fernandez interviewed on Thursday. Ex-Lakers head coach Frank Vogel and ex-Sixers head coach Doc Rivers, who coached Phoenix starting point guard Chris Paul on the Clippers, are set to meet with Suns executives on Friday.
- Clippers team president Lawrence Frank released a statement thanking and congratulating former Los Angeles GM Michael Winger on his new job as team president for the Wizards (Twitter link). “Michael is one of the NBA’s brightest team-builders, a strategic and creative thinker who is always a step ahead,” Frank said in part.
Lakers Notes: LeBron, Offseason, Kyrie, Prospects
All-NBA Lakers small forward LeBron James surprised the basketball world at large on Monday when he suggested he would be contemplating retirement this offseason.
Shams Charania said on FanDuel TV (Twitter video link) that he believes the 19-time All-Star will stick around at least a while longer.
“My sense is LeBron could have two years left remaining in his his career,” Charania said. “… There’s certainly an expectation that he’s gonna continue playing, he’s got two years left on his Lakers deal. … It would be a true surprise if he really did actually retire.”
There’s more out of Los Angeles:
- The Lakers only have three guaranteed contracts on their books for 2023/24. Multiple league executives spoke with Sean Deveney of Heavy.com about what Los Angeles might decide to do this offseason in terms of roster construction. The team has a player option on swingman Malik Beasley, which one executive expects the club to pick up. “He can be a contributor, really on any team,” they said. “The expectation is they’ll keep him. He can be a good trade piece if you need one. It’s just, if the tax is a big worry, he’d be the easy piece to move off of.” Following some big playoff games essentially in Beasley’s stead, unrestricted free agent Lonnie Walker IV may get more money elsewhere, another executive speculates. “I can’t see how they can pay him, he is probably a goner,” the exec said.
- James’ former Cavaliers teammate Kyrie Irving, now an unrestricted free agent, has long been seen as a potential fit for Los Angeles. Jason Lloyd and Jon Greenberg of The Athletic weigh the pros and cons of adding an erratic, controversial talent of Irving’s caliber and price tag.
- The Lakers, possessors of the Nos. 17 and 47 picks in this year’s draft, will work out six young prospects on Friday, headlined by G League Ignite small forward Leonard Miller, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link). Virginia guard Kihei Clark, Kentucky forward Chris Livingston, Pepperdine forward Maxwell Lewis, Dayton forward DaRon Holmes II, and Baylor guard Adam Flagler round out the invitees.
Southwest Notes: Williams, Bufkin, Spurs, Rockets
Grizzlies reserve small forward Ziaire Williams, a lottery pick in 2021, finished the 2022/23 NBA season out of Memphis’ rotation. Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal writes that a preseason injury seemed to derail the 6’8″ swingman’s second year as a pro, and he failed to evolve as a shooter or playmaker.
Though Williams has been solid when it comes to converting his looks around the rack and in the mid-range, Cole opines that the wing’s shot diet is weighted too heavily toward his poor three-point shooting, which is impacting his overall efficiency on offense.
In his 37 games with Memphis last year, Williams averaged 5.7 PPG on .429/.258/.773 shooting.
There’s more out of the Southwest Division:
- Michigan combo guard Kobe Bufkin could be a perfect fit for the Pelicans with the No. 14 draft pick next month, opines Christian Clark of NOLA.com. The athletic, positionally versatile lefty took a giant leap during his sophomore college season, and projects as a solid two-way contributor at the next level.
- The Spurs have added San Antonio businesswoman Kimberly Lewis, founder of investment management group KSL Resources, to their ownership group, per Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. “Kim Lewis’ business acumen and deep-rooted knowledge of our community brings immeasurable value to our organization,” managing partner Peter J. Holt said in a statement. “We look forward to learning from her as we strive to strengthen our organization and embark on our shared mission of enhancing community impact.”
- Having likely missed out on the opportunity to select one of the consensus top three prospects in this year’s draft, the rebuilding Rockets may decide to expedite their rebuild and move on from their No. 4 pick in this year’s draft. Kelly Iko of The Athletic brainstorms some hypothetical deals that could benefit Houston. “The biggest thing is we now have certainty about the pick number,” general manager Rafael Stone told Iko. “This is a super busy month for us and the two times trades happen are around the trade deadline and the draft. We can start to evaluate various trade options, we can really think through free agency.” Iko considers deals for targets like Raptors swingman OG Anunoby and Hawks vets Dejounte Murray and John Collins, among others.
Atlantic Notes: Dinwiddie, Nets, Niang, Celtics
Nets point guard Spencer Dinwiddie was a recent guest on ex-NBA star Gilbert Arenas’ podcast Gil’s Arena, and told Arenas that he was very much looking forward to his future in Brooklyn.
“I’m super excited,” Dinwiddie said (hat tip to Nets Daily for the transcript). “I’ve been with the Nets six years out of my nine, roughly. I’ve been there for many different forms of the Nets, from when we were kind of the young upstarts — [D’Angelo Russell] and stuff. Then we had the max guys — [Kevin Durant] and Kyrie [Irving]… but now kind of like a more mature, kind of a ready-to-win core that probably needs a guy but probably within that range.”
Dinwiddie is owed $18.9MM through the 2023/24 season. The vet will hit unrestricted free agency that summer if he doesn’t ink a veteran extension with Brooklyn next season.
There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- The Nets generated an $18.1MM traded player exception from their Durant trade with the Suns. ProfessorB of Nets Daily unpacks how Brooklyn could use its TPE going forward, identifying several intriguing players whose salaries would fit into that exception.
- Sixers forward Georges Niang wrote his final “diary entry” of the 2022/23 season, as logged by Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer, about his impending free agency and the end of Philadelphia’s playoff run. “Obviously, you want to go to a place where you’re appreciated — and I’ve always felt appreciated in Philadelphia,” Niang wrote. “Other than that, I don’t know anything else. The teams that I played on before, where I was appreciated, those teams are totally different now. I’m thankful that the place that I have most recently played appreciates me for who I am and what I stand for and what I can bring to the table. But free agency, stuff happens so quickly. Someone said it best to me: It’s almost like musical chairs. You don’t want to be the one that doesn’t have a chair to sit in.”
- Conversations the day before the Celtics’ Game 4 win in their ongoing Eastern Conference Finals matchup against the Heat helped galvanize Boston, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN. “Just coming together, talking it out,” All-Star swingman Jaylen Brown in explaining the content of the team’s pregame chats. “And like a lot of times when you get to this point down 3-0, you see locker rooms and teams start to go in the other direction… We wanted to make sure that we looked each other in the eye and came out today and put our best foot forward, and I’m proud of our group for doing that because you see teams with their back against the wall and you see they just collapse.”
Heat Notes: Clutch Wins, Martin, Robinson, Playoff Run
An up-and-down 44-38 regular season full of close games helped propel All-NBA small forward Jimmy Butler and his Heat to what has been an incredible playoff tear, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN.
Miami is leading the Celtics 2-0 in their best-of-seven conference finals series.
Windhorst notes that 38 of Miami’s 44 regular season wins were achieved in clutch time, defined as instances when the margin is five or fewer points during a game’s final five minutes in regulation or overtime. He adds that this has helped galvanize the team in the playoffs, even when it has fallen behind. To wit, the Heat are 6-2 in the postseason when trailing by 10 or more points in a contest.
“Just being in those (clutch-time) situations 50-plus times during the regular season, that just brings great experience for us,” center Bam Adebayo said.
There’s more out of South Beach:
- Heat forward Caleb Martin, who established a new personal postseason high with 25 points on Friday, has capitalized on Boston’s inferred disrespect of his abilities, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. In leaning on a single-big lineup for much of the night, the Celtics opened the door for the Heat to play the 6’5″ Martin as a small ball power forward, and he promptly lit them up. Though giving Martin space to beat them worked in the Celtics’ favor during the conference finals last year, he’s making them pay this time around. “One thing Caleb told me was, ‘This is not last year,’” Adebayo said. “That really resonated with me, because they did the same thing to him last year. I feel like he felt like it was disrespectful.”
- Although he was out of the rotation for much of the second half of the season, Heat forward Duncan Robinson made a point to remain prepared in the postseason and has emerged as a critical bench role player, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Through 13 playoff games, the 6’7″ wing is averaging 7.9 PPG on .424/.420/1.000 shooting splits in 17.1 MPG off the bench.
- The Heat are a testament to the fact that surrounding a superstar with depth, rather than fielding top-heavy “super-team” rosters, can be a formula for playoff success, writes Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic. Miami’s togetherness as a cumulative unit, heavy on chemistry, has helped push it to being just two games away from its second NBA Finals berth in four seasons.
Northwest Notes: Jazz, First-Round Picks, Nuggets, Jokic
The Jazz currently possess the ninth pick in this year’s top-heavy NBA draft. Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune considers how the Jazz could theoretically trade their way into a higher pick.
Larsen notes that Trail Blazers, Rockets, and potentially even the Pistons could be looking to move on from their own lottery selections in the 3-5 range.
At this past week’s draft combine in Chicago, the Jazz spoke to Alabama forward Brandon Miller, Villanova wing Cam Whitmore, UCF big man Taylor Hendricks, and Houston forward Jarace Walker, all of whom are projected to be off the board before Utah can draft.
“I’m sure we’re going to have a lot of interesting conversations here over the next few weeks,” GM Justin Zanik told Larsen. “As we get our own internal work done, then we’ll really start engaging with teams as they get to build their board and know a little bit more as well.”
There’s more out of the Northwest Division:
- Sources around the NBA inform Sarah Todd of The Deseret News that they don’t expect the Jazz to retain all three of their current first-round draft picks. Besides No. 9, Utah also controls No. 16 and No. 28.
- Organizational patience has been a huge factor in the Nuggets’ playoff success story this season, opines Sam Amick of The Athletic. “I remember [former team president Tim Connelly] calling me up, [and saying], ‘Hey, we can trade Jamal [Murray] for this guy,’” head coach Michael Malone recalled in a conversation with Amick. “[This was] probably three or four years ago — [and it was] a marquee player. I said ‘No.’ Like, ‘What? Let’s not rush this. We have a patient ownership group. Let’s f—ing take our time and build this the right way. A bigger name is not always better.’” Murray discussed how the close-knit chemistry among the team’s core players has positively impacted their on-court performance. “You’re a tighter group when you’ve been together for so long,” Murray said. “You know each other’s tendencies. You have a better feeling for each other. I just think that we’ve grown as a team, and as a core. We’ve grown, (as opposed to) the team that moves around a lot.”
- The expert passing and basketball IQ of the Nuggets’ core players has helped the team put their own unique stamp on a postseason run that sees them just one game away from their first ever NBA Finals appearance, writes Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports. “I love it, just because you can see everybody’s moving,” All-NBA center Nikola Jokic said of the team’s ball distribution. “I think that’s hard to guard.”
Central Notes: Ivey, Wings, Mad Ants, Bucks
Pistons rookie shooting guard Jaden Ivey seems to be on the precipice of an exciting pro career in Detroit, writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com.
Langlois notes that Ivey’s diligent work ethic and multifaceted growth as a passer and defender should be encouraging developments for Pistons fans. As a rookie, he posted promising stats of 16.3 PPG, 5.2 APG and 3.9 RPG across 74 contests.
“The guy really works,” Pistons general manager Troy Weaver said. “He got better in all aspects. He’s got a big-time upside but what makes that so attractive is he works. That’s what sold us during the process. The kid’s a big-time worker and he’ll be in and improve. Whatever his weaknesses are, he’ll work through them. Whatever he’s supposed to be as a player, he’ll become because he’ll put the work in.”
There’s more out of the Central Division:
- Having missed out on the draft’s top prize, do-everything big man Victor Wembanyama, the Pistons now seem to be prioritizing a pick that will fit the rest of their roster, writes Mike Curtis of The Detroit News (subscription required). Curtis notes that several potential Detroit draft targets, including Villanova forward Cam Whitmore and Overtime Elite swingmen Ausar and Amen Thompson, should possess the athletic skill set that would allow them to complement incumbent perimeter players Bojan Bogdanovic and Isaiah Livers.
- The Fort Wayne Mad Ants, the G League affiliate of the Pacers, are departing their home arena, Fort Wayne’s Memorial Coliseum, after 16 years. The Mad Ants will be relocating to Indianapolis temporarily, before settling in a Noblesville arena, still under construction at present, for the 2024/25 season. Dylan Sinn and Devan Filchak of The Journal Gazette detail the impact of the departure on the community.
- The Bucks are reportedly moving to the next stage in their search for their next head coach this weekend. According to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link), Milwaukee is in the process of selecting candidates for the second stage of its interview process.
Atlantic Notes: Dowtin, Raptors, Simmons, Harden-Doc
Raptors reserve point guard Jeff Dowtin underwent surgery on his right ankle, per Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca (Twitter link). Lewenberg adds that Dowtin will be in a walking boot for about two weeks, and will recuperate under the supervision of the Raptors’ medical staff over the summer.
Signed to a two-way deal with Toronto, Dowtin appeared in 25 games for the club, averaging 10.4 MPG. With the Raptors’ NBAGL affiliate, he averaged 16.9 PPG, 6.1 APG, 4.2 RPG and 1.7 SPG.
There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- The Raptors have the No. 13 pick in this summer’s upcoming draft. Eric Koreen of The Athletic speculates about how Toronto will handle the draft selection. Koreen is fairly confident that the Raptors will hold on to the lottery pick to add a solid young player, rather than trading it.
- Nets guard Ben Simmons has moved on to the next phase of his rehabilitation from the nerve impingement that ended his 2022/23 season, per Brian Lewis of The New York Post. “Ben has been cleared to progress to his next stage of his rehab and is progressing really well,” his agent Bernie Lee told Lewis this week. “And we remain very excited about his ability to return to form next year.”
- Sixers point guard James Harden has been pinpointed by Doc Rivers staffers as a key behind-the-scenes factor in the ex-head coach’s departure from the team, sources inform Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. Fischer cautions (Twitter link) that any possible Harden influence in the choice to move on from Rivers would have been one of several elements impacting that decision.