NFL
By: Greg Rector
As soon as Kevin Durant made known his desire to be traded a third team emerged as a possible destination after it was reported that Phoenix and Miami were Durant’s preferred destinations. That team of course is the Toronto Raptors. Of course, social media especially on this side of the border exploded with the news the Raptors were definitely interested in acquiring one of the biggest names in the NBA.
The Gobert Deal
When the Timberwolves paid a huge price to acquire Rudy Gobert the cost of getting a player of Durant’s abilities rose exponentially. Minnesota traded 5 players and four future first-round picks to get one of the most prolific defensive players in the league. Durant of course is far more prolific on the offensive end of the floor. The soon to be 34 year old has amassed over 25,000 points, brings with him 27.2 points per game average, obviously has championship pedigree, and would instantly vault the Raptors into a top-four team in the Eastern Conference after surprisingly finishing 5th last season. So what is the return on Durant actually going to be? Especially considering he has four seasons left on his current contract.
The Raptors Front Office
Masai Ujuri is no stranger to making impactful deals, as we all witnessed when he dealt away Demar Derozan, Jakob Poetl, and brought Danny Green and Kawhi Leonard to Toronto. We all know the outcome was an NBA championship. The problem here is the amount of future draft picks and or pick swaps that this deal would involve, along with the players who would need to call Brooklyn home. The Raptors have the draft picks to be dealt, it’s who would remain to be Durant’s teammates where the stumbling block appears to be happening.
The Possible Players
Of course, the Brooklyn Nets are looking for 2 All-Star players in exchange for Durant. In Toronto, that means Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam. That would be too large a price for Toronto in my opinion, never mind all the draft picks. Trading one of them is a possibility but not both. The other name immediately brought into the discussion is NBA rookie of the year Scottie Barnes, and that’s a huge consideration to involve a budding 20-year-old star who has a higher ceiling and is still on a rookie deal. There are other players though who could be dealt to Brooklyn, namely OG Anunoby, Gary Trent Jr, and Precious Aichuwa. The Raptors fanbase and the team are not interested in having Barnes in the trade at this point. Durant wants to play with guys who can win a championship, VanVleet and Siakam have the rings. Anunoby and Trent Jr are on very team-friendly deals as well. Figuring out who to deal with and who to keep while having Brooklyn agree is like solving a jigsaw puzzle at this point. The other issue involved for Brooklyn is the mercurial Kyrie Irving and his status as a Brooklyn Net.
A Third Party
For me, it would be more sensible for any Durant trade to involve a third-team in the deal. Toronto has also been tied to restricted free agent center Deandre Ayton this off season Ayton is in limbo mostly due to the Durant situation and Phoenix might be a team to get involved in a trade. The same applies to the Indiana Pacers who still have Myles Turner and future picks as well.
Brooklyn
With both Irving and Durant’s situations, the future of the Nets and the direction they choose is totally up in the air. Nets general manager Sean Marks has to be under the gun within the organization. After the wheeling and dealing to bring Durant and James Harden to Brooklyn to play with Irving, the 44 games together for the trio has to be considered a huge failure. Is it best for them to try and play hardball with Durant? I don’t think so in this era the player has a lot more power. The Nets need to get past all the drama they’ve operated with the last few seasons.
The Outcome
I really don’t see a trade happening anytime soon. It’s a very complex situation and the teams must weigh all the factors. Brooklyn and Toronto both have plenty at stake. For the Raptors coming off a 48-win season (Something that Chris Bosh and Vince Carter teams didn’t accomplish) with a nucleus that is good and building to improve, has to decide if the price for Durant and a possible 2nd NBA title is okay or do they pull out and keep building via the draft and free agency? Meanwhile, the rumor mill will keep churning out possible scenarios that would see Durant become a part of #WeTheNorth for me if the Raptors package 4 players (VanVleet, Anunoby, Trent Jr, Aichuwa) and 4 future draft picks that should be enough to accomplish the trade. If Brooklyn balks so be it. Walk away and build from within.
As always you can find me on Twitter @GregCowboys and get the latest Raptors gear here
