The Toronto Raptors find themselves in an interesting position a month out of this season's trade deadline.
The Raptors spent much of the first half of the season on the outside looking in on the Play-In picture, but they now sit in seventh place in the Eastern Conference standings, having won six in a row. Not only that, but they're only 1.5 games behind the Philadelphia 76ers in fifth place and half a game behind the Cleveland Cavaliers in sixth place.
Considering the Raptors have barely had a full roster all season long, there's a lot of reason for optimism.
For a Raptors team that is built well for the future but might only be a piece or two away from making some real noise in the Eastern Conference again, should they pursue some of the leading trade candidates?
NBA League Pass: Sign up to unlock live out-of-market games (7-day free trial)
Ben Simmons, G/F, 76ers
Case for: The Raptors have built a roster full of rangy wings who can defend multiple positions and do a little bit of everything offensively. Simmons fits that bill. In addition to being a two-time member of the All-Defensive First Team, Simmons is one of the league's best passers and is a dominant force in transition. He's not a threat to score outside of the paint, but the Raptors have enough shooters at other positions to open up the court for him. Also, the Raptors have one of the best development staffs in the league. Perhaps they could unlock that part of his game.
Case against: To no surprise, Philadelphia's asking price for Simmons continues to be high — an All-Star calibre player and/or multiple first-round picks, per The Athletic's Shams Charania. Prior to the 2021 NBA Draft, The Action Network's Matt Moore reported that a proposed framework of Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet, OG Anunoby and the No. 4 pick, which became Scottie Barnes, was rejected by Toronto. Simmons is an established star, but is he worth the Raptors breaking up their core and giving up a lot of their depth for?
Domantas Sabonis, C, Pacers
Case for: The Raptors are thin at the center position and Sabonis is one of the best bigs in the league today. He's earned back-to-back All-Star selections with averages of 19.4 points, 12.2 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game on 53.8 percent shooting from the field over the last two seasons. He won't turn 26 years old until May 3, so he's still very much in the prime of his career and fits in relatively well in Toronto's timeline. It helps that he's on a team-friendly contract, with him being on the books for $18.6 million this season, $19.9 million next season and $21.3 million in 2023-24.
Case against: Sabonis is a bruising scorer and dominant rebounder with solid vision, but he's not a 3-point shooter and he's a limited defender. The 3-point shooting isn't a huge deal considering he's a center, but his limitations on defence could be a problem in Toronto considering Nick Nurse is known for running aggressive defensive schemes. Additionally, The Athletic's Shams Charania reported that Sabonis is "expected to generate strong interest" around the league. If the Raptors were to pursue him, there would likely be a lot of competition.
Myles Turner, C, Pacers
Case for: Turner offers a unique blend of 3-point shooting and shot-blocking at the center position. Through 39 games this season, he's taking 4.4 3-pointers per game while knocking them down at a 35.7 percent clip. On the other end of the court, he's on pace to lead the league in blocks (2.9 per game) for the third time in his career. It wouldn't be overly difficult to match his salary in a trade, as he's being paid $18.0 million this season and next season. TSN's Josh Lewenberg reported that the Raptors have had "their eyes on" Indiana's bigs for years, but "Turner in particular."
Case against: This really comes down to what the Pacers are looking for in return for Turner. All in all, he'd be a pretty good fit on the Raptors. He has his limitations — there are more versatile defenders at his position and he's not much of an interior scorer — but he'd give them a legitimate shot-blocker and floor-spacer at a position of need. The only real concern would be that the addition of Turner could take minutes and opportunities away from Precious Achiuwa, which could impact his long-term development.
Jerami Grant, F, Pistons
Case for: Grant is coming off of a breakout season that saw him finish second to Julius Randle in Most Improved Player voting. He established himself as a versatile defender and solid 3-point shooter in Oklahoma City and Denver, and he's grown as on-ball scorer in Detroit. The Pistons are "fielding calls" for Grant, according to Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer. He ticks a few of the boxes the Raptors are looking for on the wing.
Case against: Pairing Grant with Anunoby, Barnes and Pascal Siakam — four long wings who can defend multiple positions, handle the ball, put pressure on teams around the basket and offer a decent amount of shooting — sure would be interesting, but it might be overkill. That's assuming the Raptors could even get Grant without having to part ways with one of Anunoby, Barnes and Siakam, which seems unlikely. In which case, do the Raptors view him as a short- or long-term upgrade over any one of them? Similar to Sabonis, there will likely be a lot of interest around the league in Grant, especially from contenders, so getting him wouldn't be easy.
Buddy Hield, G, Kings
Case for: The Raptors are a middle-of-the-road 3-point shooting team and Hield is one of the best 3-point shooters in the league. In the first five seasons of his career, Hield knocked down 3.0 3-pointers per game at a 40.6 percent clip. His efficiency (37.5 percent) is down this season, but only Stephen Curry (5.1) and VanVleet (3.8) are making more 3-pointers per game than Hield (3.5). He can shoot off the catch and on the move.
Case against: The Raptors already have Gary Trent Jr. at shooting guard. Hield is the superior 3-point shooter, but Trent is no slouch in that department — in fact, he has been one of the better 3-point shooters in the league this season. Trent, 22, is also quite a bit younger than Hield, 29, and he has made significant strides defensively, to the point where he's been one of the most disruptive defenders in the league. (Hield has never been known for his defence.) They're on similar contracts, so the Raptors would be committing a lot of money to the two of them if this wasn't some sort of swap.
The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA or its clubs.