Toronto Raptors center Jakob Poeltl is on a mission to begin this season.
The center has put together two masterful performances against the Detroit Pistons and Boston Celtics.
Against the Celtics, Poeltl put up 35 points and 12 rebounds on 16-for-19 shooting from the field.
Against the Pistons, he put up 25 points and 19 rebounds on 12-for-21 shooting from the field.
Saturday was a career-high night for Poeltl in terms of scoring with 35. An impressive feat given the Raptors were going up against the reigning champions on the road.
While it is great to see Poeltl step up his scoring production due to the team’s injuries, it also increases his trade value.
Now at 29-years-old, he is looking to play winning basketball. Unfortunately, that is not the environment in Toronto right now.
However, teams would certainly give up a first-round draft pick to acquire Poeltl’s services, if this production continues.
Currently, he is averaging 16.2 points and 11.6 rebounds through the early part of the season. Both career-high averages.
While the results have not been pretty with a 2-12 record, the Raptors have had some tight games.
The Raptors nearly pulled off the massive upset against the Celtics in TD Garden which is impressive.
Going back to Poeltl, there is going to be interest from plenty of teams wanting his services round the trade deadline. Should he continue this kind of production, it bodes well for Toronto getting a high-level return for him.
Poeltl has this season and next season remaining before having a player-option for the 2026-27 season. Opposing general managers are going to be willing to trade for that since there is a bit of long-term security.
Jakob Poeltl is becoming irreplaceable for Raptors
If this high-level output continues from Poeltl it is going to be hard to ship him out. He has been a steady force at the center position for the Raptors, which has been an area of weakness in previous seasons.
Through the early part of the season, Poeltl is proving that he could be deemed irreplaceable.
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