The latest Raptors trade deadline rumours

Amit Mann discusses the latest rumours circulating around the Toronto Raptors ahead of the trade deadline on Thursday.

Video Transcript

AMIT MANN: The trade deadline is tomorrow, so let's look at all the rumors that are circulating around the Toronto Raptors and some of their best players. Like and Subscribe on YouTube, and let's begin.

So let's start with OG Anunoby. According to Jake Fischer, the price for OG Anunoby is quite steep, meaning the Toronto Raptors are looking for multiple first round picks, hopefully without protections or at least limited protections, along with a few promising young players. Rumored teams of interest-- you got the Knicks, you got the Suns, Pelicans, Grizzlies, and of course, the Indiana Pacers.

Now, on the OG Anunoby side of things, there have been rumors for a very long time now that he is unhappy or is looking for a different role with the Toronto Raptors or with another team. And that has been confirmed, at least for what we know now, by Sam Amick, who says that whether it's with Toronto or with another team, OG is looking for a bigger, more expanded offensive role.

Now, you can argue that maybe that isn't the best case for him, that's not what a team needs to be a winning basketball team, OG as a number two or number three option. But in some ways, that doesn't really matter right now. The fact is, OG Anunoby, one of the best 3 and D players, an All-Defense candidate, a Defensive Player of the Year candidate probably down the road, is looking for more reps on offense.

And the Raptors have to ask themselves, are they willing to do that? As it currently stands, the Raptors don't have a lot of room for him to be an on-ball creator. You got Pascal Siakam, Scottie Barnes, Gary Trent, Jr., Fred VanVleet. OG wants more touches.

And now, the Raptors have to decide if they want to fulfill that promise and just bank on him-- more reps this season, an offseason of development, and also next season. Because again, he is under contract until the end of next season, where he has a player option, where he's going to opt out. And obviously, he wants to maximize his value in the marketplace.

So the Raptors have to ask, do we want to make that concession for OG Anunoby and give him those reps with us to ensure that he stays, and he is happy with Toronto? That's the question.

All right, let's move to Gary Trent, Jr. He's been linked to a few different teams as we head towards the trade deadline. And it makes sense-- he can help bolster any offense that's looking to get that little uptick heading into the playoffs.

And we remember all those rumors between Jakob Poeltl, Gary Trent, Jr., going back to last season. And apparently, according to Marc Stein, there are new rumors that are circulating around those two players, and the Raptors and the Spurs making some kind of swap.

And to me, when you hear something like that, that would indicate the Raptors are looking to retool instead of rebuild if you're going to bring in Jakob Poeltl. But also, keeping Gary Trent, Jr., beside Pascal Siakam and Scottie Barnes makes a lot of sense. He's a sharpshooter. He's an on-ball creator.

He's developing as a three-level scorer. And the price is around $25 million per season. That's actually not that bad for someone who's still entering their prime.

Moving to Pascal Siakam-- and ever since the Brooklyn Nets traded Kyrie Irving, they have been looking to insert another star to play alongside Kevin Durant, who they want to keep. And insert Pascal Siakam. That's the name that they're looking for right now.

You can see there's a very natural fit with him in Brooklyn alongside Kevin Durant. And again, as the Raptors are wont to do, the price is apparently very steep for Pascal Siakam because they do like him.

And any deal that is made between the Brooklyn Nets and the Toronto Raptors seems to be centered around Nic Claxton. That is according to Ian Begley of SNY. The Raptors have been linked to him for a few seasons now. They like his length. They like his verticality.

They like his mobility, similar to Jakob Poeltl. So that's where that's at. Do the Raptors want to trade Pascal Siakam? If they do that, we're talking rebuild.

Also linked to the Brooklyn Nets is Fred VanVleet who, according to Jake Fischer, is the most likely candidate of all the starters in the Raptors starting lineup to be moved at the trade deadline. Teams of interest-- you got the Suns, you got the Clippers, you got the Lakers, and of course, the Brooklyn Nets, as I mentioned.

Fred is going to opt out of his contract. He's looking to make $30 to $35 million per season, reportedly. And his next contract, it will be probably his last big payday that he gets. And he has every right to look for the most amount of money as possible.

And when it comes to where Fred VanVleet and the Toronto Raptors are, it's like this-- is he a culture fit? Absolutely. He is the epitome of what the Raptors are about. You think of his journey, where he started, where he is now, he is an absolute fit.

However, on the court, you could argue that maybe not. Scottie Barnes, Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby are all looking for their touches, and again, rightly so. And so do you want Fred to be that off-ball person for a full season?

They tried to make it happen this year. It hasn't really panned out. Fred has struggled defensively a little bit. He has struggled with his shot, although he has turned it around a little bit.

You could argue that everything that happened earlier in the season was attributed to maybe some injuries. But right now, over his past 11 games, he's back to his All-Star-level self-- 26 points, 45% from the field, 40% from 3, five rebounds, seven assists, and almost three stocks.

However, with so many players looking for more on-ball opportunities in Toronto, does it make sense to bring Fred back? I mean, great, he is a terrific leader. And that leadership quality does carry a certain dollar amount.

But is it $30 to $35 million per season? I mean, maybe not. Maybe you're looking for a point guard with a little bit more traditional skills, a playmaker, some shooting. And you can just call it right there.

In the end, the Raptors have to decide which players they want to roll with now. That decision was coming eventually, but it has been escalated by the season panning out the way it has. If players aren't happy, that's fine. Either you make them happy, or you leave on good terms and you find them a solution that makes sense for them, and also that makes sense for your franchise in terms of what's going to be coming back.

According to Mike Singer, the Raptors have shown interest in Bones Hyland, who is also looking for a change of scenery. And he's a great player, but he's also looking for more on-ball touches. And does it make sense to bring him to Toronto when you already have so many players looking for the same opportunity? Probably not.

So if that were to happen, now, we're talking a rebuild around Scottie Barnes. And the Raptors could go that avenue. Or is it a retool? Do you bring in some 3-point shooting, some guard depth, some rim protection?

You make some tweaks along the lines here with some of the starters. Maybe you trade one of them, two of them, whatever. You retool, and you try and pursue the playoffs this season, and you go along with a new core of players.

That's the decision that the Raptors are making. Masai Ujiri, Bobby Webster, they're going to be doing this over the next 24 hours. And we'll see what happens.