[Grange] Chris Boucher and Bruce Brown are the two Raptors with the best chance to be moved for a decent return prior to Thursday’s trade deadline. But as of now, there’s no guarantee either player will be changing uniforms.
by The_Living_L
@Toronto Raptors
19 Comments
if Masai traded Siakam/OG, I don’t think he’ll be reluctant to trade Brown/Boucher even if the return isn’t great
Oh wow never would’ve guessed. Thanks Grange.
Thank goodness Grange is the mouthpiece for the FO or I’d be worried that this would be true. Masai and Bobby trying to raise the price for our players by putting it out there that we are okay with keeping them.
Bruce “Quick Flip” Brown
If I see Bruce Brown, Chris Boucher, or even Gary Trent Jr on this team after the deadline I’ll be floored. Bruce and Gary are just taking away minutes from the younger guys at this point. People can say Gary is still young but we know what Gary is at this point and it’s on the front office to move him, he simply just doesn’t fit in this system.
Other interesting tidbits from the article:
So, would a team in need of some depth up front offer a second-round pick and be willing to take on his deal? Opinions may vary on that. Given his uneven performance this season, the Raptors’ focus on developing their young talent and the coaching staff seemingly having concluded that Boucher’s unique style isn’t a good long-term fit, some sources have speculated that Toronto might have to add second-round pick or take back a longer-term deal to facilitate a trade.
According to a league source the Raptors are asking for and have been offered a first-round pick for Brown, who is earning $22.5 million this season and has a team option on his deal for next season worth $23 million.
The sticking point is that the Knicks are trying to get the deal done by using one of the two first-round picks they have for upcoming draft – either their own pick, projected to be 23rd, or the Dallas Mavericks’ pick, which would be 17th if the draft was tomorrow, and is top-12 protected.
Given the Raptors are already in position to have four picks in the top 31 selections of what is deemed to be a fairly ordinary draft class, at best, it’s little wonder Toronto is holding out for a future Knicks first-rounder.
The sticking point is that the Knicks are trying to get the deal done by using one of the two first-round picks they have for upcoming draft – either their own pick, projected to be 23rd, or the Dallas Mavericks’ pick, which would be 17th if the draft was tomorrow, and is top-12 protected.
Outside of Brown and Boucher, the Raptors are certainly otherwise wide-open for business, the exceptions being – obviously – newly named all-star Scottie Barnes, point guard Immanuel Quickley and 23-year-old RJ Barrett, who is playing above the value of his current contract since being acquired by the Raptors (with Quickley) from the Knicks.
Some teams have poked around Jacob Poeltl, who could be a useful depth big on teams looking ahead and having to battle with the likes of Joel Embiid or Nikola Jokic in the playoffs. One Western Conference GM I spoke with suggested the big Austrian might even fetch a (likely heavily protected) first-round pick, but the circumstances would need to be just right, given Poeltl has three years and $59.5 million left on his contract.
Dennis Schroder would be of interest to teams looking for point-guard depth, but the return would be second-rounders at best. said one league source.
It would be a similar story for Gary Trent Jr., who has shot the ball superbly this season – he’s hitting 42.8 per cent of his threes, which would be a career-best – but remains in the eyes of many a tough fit in a playoff-calibre rotation because of his weaknesses — attacking closeouts, defending and as a playmaker. Given Trent Jr. is a pending free agent and still just 25, there’s a case for the Raptors to try and re-sign him, but the sense is if there was a reasonable return the Raptors might move him to open up minutes for Gradey Dick.
After that, the Raptors have veterans Thad Young and Otto Porter Jr. on expiring deals who might catch the imagination of teams looking for emergency depth – the Los Angeles Clippers have had an eye on Porter Jr. at times this season at minimal cost, but the return is likely in the range of lower-end second-round picks.
And there’s the kiss of death, but seriously Boucher hasn’t been playing lately and getting two DNPs and only playing in garbage time last night in what was at one point a 46 point blowout, the writing for him’s been on the wall for a while now.
With BB, a 1st round pick (2024 or later, it shouldn’t matter) and expiring salary should be an auto accept at this point.
Bruce is the only guy that they have to trade IMO.
His value won’t be as high come the offseason and you need to clear minutes for Gradey to start some games down the stretch.
1. OKC receives Bruce Brown, Raps receives Bertans, Dieng, 2025 FRP.
2. Mavs receives Boucher, Raps receives Holmes, 2025 2RP
A whole lot of nothing.
well time to back their bags then
Kind of hilarious that the return on Poeltl is projected to be a heavily protected first when we gave up what will be a lottery pick and 2 seconds to acquire him on an expiring. Just more proof this was the worst move ever.
Boucher would be great on a lot of teams. Would love to see him on the nuggets
Breaking raptors news: nothing new to report
A week ago the local guys were all sounding so sure and now they are all trying to walk it back to some extent.
FO is using Grange as a mouth piece so they are 100% getting moved. Brown 100000%
Yes, we’ve been seeing this reported over and over since we traded for Brown. This is not new information at all. I swear there’s been like 10 posts saying this same thing in the past 24 hours.
I love how they always start these tweets so that you think it’s breaking news.
Chris Boucher and Bruce Brown…
Wait for it…
Are doing nothing.
McDonald’s and Dairy Queen are two fast food restaurants with the best chance of me doordash-ing from on Friday night. But as of now, there’s no guarantee either store will be ordered from.
Trent and McDaniels too please