Feb 9, 2018

How will the Raptors navigate the buyout market?

With the trade deadline now come and gone, the Toronto Raptors and the rest of the NBA face a March 1 deadline to add any bought-out player to their roster ahead of the playoffs. Just how might the Raptors approach this next phase of attempting to load up for the postseason?

Webster: I imagine we will be active in the buyout market

After a relatively quiet trade deadline, save for a trade of long-time project Bruno Caboclo to the Sacramento Kings for Malachi Richardson (who will likely take Bruno's spot with Raptors 905), the Toronto Raptors will now recalibrate and focus on the NBA buyout market.

Teams have until March 1 to release a player in time for him to sign with a playoff team for a postseason run.

Raptors general manager Bobby Webster joined Gareth Wheeler and Matthew Cauz on TSN Radio 1050 Toronto on Friday morning and admitted the team was already discussing buyout options for the coming days.

“We intentionally kept that 15^th roster spot open for precisely this," Webster said. "We do have a flexibility. We gained a little bit more in the deal yesterday, so all the names that will be thrown around over the next week or two, we’ve already started to debate them. We knew that it was something that was coming. We have our internal lists. We’ve spoken to a number of people internally to figure out what we need. It’s a long way of saying nothing, but it’s a short way of saying that I imagine we’ll be active in the buyout market.”

The issue for the Raptors, like it is for other clubs, is team chemistry. Clearly, things are working for the Dinos' rotation right now with their second unit emerging as the finest bench in the entire NBA. You don't want to introduce an element to upset that, so any addition made will have to be done in the midst of a fine balancing act.

“We have our starters, we have our bench," Webster said. "We’re playing 10, sometimes 11 guys – where are the extra minutes to be had? We have to be thoughtful about who that player is, what their role is, what their expectations are. Because really, we’re trying to build a team that competes in May and deep into June. It’s not something where you’re gonna have X minutes a night or X number of shots. It might be something where you come in and you play sometimes, but you might not play all the time, obviously, depending on the calibre of player."

So with that said, who might be available and would they help the Toronto Raptors.

Joe Johnson

Joe Johnson, SG/SF

Sacramento Kings

VITALS

GP

32
MP

21.9
PPG

7.3
FG%

.420
3P%

.274

LOWDOWN

Joe Johnson might be the prize available on the buyout market and will have no shortage of suitors, which likely works against the Raptors. Now 37, Johnson brings a wealth of playoff experience (16.2 PPG in 102 career postseason contests) and signing Johnson would go a long way in stopping him from killing the Raptors, which he has done on the regular over the course of his 17-year career. While Johnson fits the bill for the Raptors as a shooter off the bench, this has not been Johnson's finest season when it comes to his stroke from beyond the arc. He's just .274 from three this season, which is a career-worst. There's hope, however, that would change on a better team than the Jazz (from whom the Kings acquired him at the deadline). Undoubtedly the Raptors would be interested, but you can count on the likes of the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics (the first of the now seven teams Johnson has played for) to come calling, as well.

Marco Belinelli

Marco Belinelli, SG

Atlanta Hawks

VITALS

GP

52
MP

23.3
PPG

11.4
FG%

.411
3P%

.372

LOWDOWN

Could the Italian be headed for a second tour of duty with Dinos? Belinelli, 31, appeared primed for a deal before the deadline, considering the Hawks benched him in their last game prior to the deadline with the Memphis Grizzlies, but they held on to him and have decided to buy him out. Like Johnson, Belinelli is a pure shooter and will attract interest from the Raptors and others looking for a threat from deep off the bench. Oddly enough, the Raptors likely won't be the only club looking at reacquiring Belinelli with the 11-year vet also having spent time with both the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs.

Tyreke Evans

Memphis Grizzlies, SG/SF

VITALS

GP

46
MP

31.1
PPG

19.5
FG%

.458
3P%

.392

LOWDOWN

The Grizzlies appeared to have every intention of moving Evans prior to Thursday's deadline, but held out for the best possible offer that didn't come. The team was reportedly looking for at least a first-round pick in any return and didn't want to retain any salary beyond this season. That never materialized with teams coming in with multiple seconds. Because Evans, 28, is only on a one-year deal, the Grizzlies don't have his Bird rights and likely won't be able to exceed the same mid-level cap exception he's likely to be offered elsewhere. Basically, all this means is that Evans might be in no rush to re-sign in Memphis unless he really wants to and the Grizzlies risk losing him for nothing after not moving him yesterday. So if the feeling is that Evans isn't coming back, a buyout could be agreed upon and he would have no problem finding himself a new club. As for the Raptors, the fit doesn't seem to be there. Evans is a starter and accustomed to hefty minutes, something that he won't be offered in Toronto. He's unlikely to get the playing time he does right now with the Grizzlies anywhere, but there certainly will be teams capable of handing more opportunity than the Raptors can.

Ersan Ilyasova

Atlanta Hawks, PF

VITALS

GP

43
MP

25.4
PPG

10.6
FG%

.461
3P%

.359

LOWDOWN

Ersan Ilyasova is likely the least sexy name on the list of potential candidates, but the big Turk undoubtedly brings value. Ilyasova, 30, spaces the floor, creates room and his near seven-foot frame belies a sweet stroke from distance. Ilyasova doesn't really move the needle when it comes to box presence, but he's tenacious after loose balls and doesn't dog it on the defensive end.It would be interesting to see how the Raps would incorporate him into the frontcourt rotation without upsetting current roles.

Vince Carter

Vince Carter, SG

Sacramento Kings

VITALS

GP

34
MP

16.6
PPG

5.0
FG%

.385
3P%

.367

LOWDOWN

Well, here we go. This is the one buyout candidate who will elicit the greatest response from Raptors fans, both positively and negatively. Could the prodigal son return to Toronto? First, from a practicality perspective - Marc Stein says that the Kings would like to keep Carter around for the full year. That's their preference right now. That said, if a destination presented itself that satisfied Carter, a buyout would be considered. So would Toronto be considered as that kind of destination? “It’ll happen one day," Carter said of a return to Toronto in December. "It’s supposed to happen." That sounds like a yes, but there has been spurned opportunity for a reunion before. Josh Lewenberg notes that the Raptors offered Carter a deal in the summer and he chose to sign elsewhere.Let's assume, then, that he would come. Where does he fit? While Carter's minutes have been sparse in this his 20th NBA season, he started six games in the playoffs a year ago for the Memphis Grizzlies. But why the Raptors would want Carter is more about what he brings to the table off the court than what he does on. At 41, Carter is now among the NBA's elder statesmen and one of its most respected veterans, a far cry from the 28-year-old who admitted to quitting on the Raptors in his final days with the club. Carter's leadership and steadying hand could be an invigorating tonic for a young team intent on a long playoff run. Time is said to heal all wounds and Carter's receptions in Toronto have markedly improved since his early returns with the Nets in which he was booed out of the building at every touch. If there was ever an opportunity for Air Canada to return to the Hangar, it appears that this is the best one.