Four Lessons Toronto Raptors Fans Learned this Offseason

Mar 4, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) tries to dribble around Toronto Raptors forward Patrick Patterson (54) at the Air Canada Centre. Cleveland defeated Toronto 120-112. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

3. Big market superstars and RFAs are near untouchable

Superstars aren’t going anywhere.

Just look at Kevin Love for example. Even in a relatively down year, where his defensive struggles were glaring and his offensive game underwent a full makeover, he still got near a max-deal from Cleveland. And if it wasn’t Cleveland, at least eight other teams were set to throw the bank at him too.

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Of course, playing with LeBron James is always a good selling point, but even look at DeAndre Jordan. The Mavs were set to pay him a handsome price, but the Clippers last-minute pitch kept Jordan in Los Angeles. Sure, LaMarcus Aldridge is the counter-argument to this notion, but for the most part, superstars rarely leave because the financial ramifications are just too much to walk away from.

This doesn’t necessarily mean the Raptors have no shot at luring KD to Toronto, but it does mean that if they want to keep DeMar DeRozan, it will more than likely take a max-deal based off how the market has transpired.

Restricted free agents aren’t much different from superstars either. At the end of the day, young players are being offered too much money to risk playing on a qualifying offer. They simply take the extension, while teams waste no time offering them because of how scarce the available talent pool can be. It’s a win-win for both the player and the team. So unless somebody takes the risk and proves the other method can work, I highly doubt we see restricted free agents leave their respective teams via free agency.

Next: The Kevin Durant Dream Still Exists