Toronto Raptors

The Raptors have been in a terrific spot over the last few years, winning their first championship in franchise history in 2019 after trading for Kawhi Leonard, but now, this team is on the verge of making some big changes roster wise. 

In fact, they already did so when they traded away Norman Powell, their breakout wing, at the trade deadline. They were able to salvage some value from the trade by getting a young talent in Gary Trent Jr. but overall, the Raptors knew they would not be able to keep Powell and sign him to a long-term deal in the offseason, which is why they tried to get as much value as they could out of him. 

Now, with Lowry nearing the end of his career and on an expiring contract, the Raptors could be heading for a mini-rebuild process with Fred VanVleet, Pascal Siakam, O.G. Anunoby, Chris Boucher and now Gary Trent Jr. as their core moving forward. This is their core for now, but the Raptors could potentially move on from Siakam in the offseason as well. 

There have been NBA trade rumors about the Raptors making several of their star players available this offseason and with Siakam benign at the pinnacle of his career right now, they could get a ton of value for him in a trade. 

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Overall, Pascal Siakam is a proven All-Star talent and a championship proven player, but can he be “the guy” on the Raptors? Quite honestly, I do not believe so, as he thrives in that secondary star role, which is why trading him now could make a ton of sense. 

If the Raptors choose to take a step back and reconstruct things roster and organizational wise, they could be in a great position moving forward, which is why they need to make some drastic changes in the offseason, not re-signing Kyle Lowry, at least to a long-term deal, being one of them.