Every once in a while when a trade is made in the NBA, both teams come out as winners. That very well looks to be the case when it comes to the trade that occurred at the deadline last season between the Toronto Raptors and Portland Trail Blazers.
The Trail Blazers acquired Norman Powell in exchange for Gary Trent Jr. and Rodney Hood. Powell and Trent both signed lucrative deals in free agency with the teams that traded for them, as both teams have to be happy with how things have turned out.
The 22-year old Trent has been excellent for the Raptors this season. He had decent raw stats last season after the trade, but his efficiency wasn’t great. This season, he has turned things up in a major way.
Trent is living up to the two-way potential he had when he came out of Duke for the 2018 NBA Draft and was selected 37th overall. He is averaging 17.1 points per game, making a career-high 44.6 percent of his shot attempts. The 36 percent that he is shooting from the 3-point line is below his career number, but he has started coming on as of late.
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Over his last five games, Trent is averaging 21.1 points per game, knocking down 52.6 percent of his field-goal attempts and 39.5 percent of his 3-point attempts on 8.6 attempts per game.
With OG Anunoby emerging, Pascal Siakam rounding into shape, Fred VanVleet taking his game to another level without Kyle Lowry and Scottie Barnes coming out of the gate strong as a rookie, the Raptors have a ton of offensive firepower.
What makes that group so special is that they are also all good defenders. Trent, standing 6’6” with a 6’9” wingspan is a terror in passing lanes. He is averaging 2.4 steals per game, which is leading the NBA. His 4.4 deflections per game are also pacing the NBA currently.
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Toronto and Gary Trent Jr. agreed to a three-year, $54 million deal in free agency that looks like a steal for the Raptors right now. If he continues producing at this level and honing his skill set, he could more than double that contract the next time he hits free agency in 2023 or 2024. He has a player option for the 2023-24 season that he could very well decline to cash in on another long-term deal.
