The Toronto Raptors have full faith in Scottie Barnes.
Despite Toronto having a rough season, he is still the Raptors’ franchise guy. According to one league source the Raptors are fully committed to rebuilding around Barnes and view Gradey Dick as another long-term fit on the team. Outside of those two, they don’t view anyone else on the roster as untouchable, per Sportsnet’s Michael Grange.
Immanuel Quickley who the Raptors inked to a five-year $175 million contract this past summer hasn’t been able to stay healthy. He has played just 9 games so far and has suffered three different injuries this season. It’s still early to judge Quickley’s contract and it doesn’t seem likely that Toronto would give up on him yet. However, Quickley was expected to show significant improvement and at the very least be durable. If Quickley doesn’t bounce back, his deal will end up looking like an overpay.
The other Raptors’ supposed core piece RJ Barrett has been playing the best basketball of his career. He has two years and $57 million left on his contract. But as Grange points out NBA players averaging what Barrett has this season are on max deals. With the possibility of a contract extension coming up this summer, it would make for an interesting decision for the Raptors. If they don’t view Barrett as a long-term piece, it would be hard to justify giving him a lucrative extension.
This Raptors’ puzzle is no where complete and perhaps they are looking to reconstruct things even more. Per one front office source with another team, the Raptors are thought to be looking for a “significant piece” to pair with Barnes down the line, per Grange.
The 2025 NBA Draft will be a big stepping stone for this franchise if they can land a top-3 pick. Outside of that, the Raptors could have a trick up their sleeve when it comes to landing another big time talent next to Barnes.
The Raptors are still at the beginning of their rebuild so a lot of things can still change.
Immanuel Quickley remains sidelined Raptors take on Hawks
Toronto Raptors guard Immanuel Quickley will miss his fifth consecutive game when the team faces the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night due to a lingering hip injury.
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