Toronto Raptors: Should Masai Ujiri Go After Kenneth Faried?
By Paul Taylor
The Toronto Raptors have been linked to Kenneth Faried in the past, but is now the time for Masai Ujiri to make his move and trade for the 2011 first round draft pick?
With the DeMar DeRozan situation coming to a quick resolution, the Toronto Raptors have concentrated their efforts on upgrading at power forward. Possible targets reportedly included Pau Gasol and Nerlens Noel, although the former has since signed for the San Antonio Spurs, while the Raptors have apparently moved on from the latter.
As such, who should Masai Ujiri now consider as a potential target to strengthen the power forward position? One possible solution could be found at his former team, the Denver Nuggets, where he was executive vice president between 2010-13.
On the lead-up to this past season’s trade deadline, the Raptors were looking for ways to improve the roster. At the time, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst told TSN 1050 that one target was Kenneth Faried.
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In the end, the speculation came to nothing, as the Raptors stood pat. However, this wasn’t the first time they had been connected to Faried.
Further, Ujiri is extremely familiar with the 26-year old, from his time in Colorado. Keep in mind he was heavily involved in the process which saw the Nuggets draft Faried with the 22nd pick of the 2011 draft.
The question is, should the Raptors consider the NCAA all-time rebounding leader as a viable possibility? He contributed 12.5 points and 8.7 rebounds per contest during the 2015-16 campaign, which would be a considerable improvement on the much older Luis Scola.
However, purely from a financial perspective, the answer would initially seem to be a resounding “no”. The Raptors are currently just over the salary cap limit for the upcoming season, meaning they have less than no wiggle room, unless they are prepared to go significantly into luxury tax territory.
Faried has three years and nearly $39 million remaining on his contract, and in truth, is not worthy of the Raptors making such a financial commitment. However, that doesn’t mean this is a lost cause, depending on how much Ujiri really wants to go for his man, with two factors which could help.
The first is to include Terrence Ross in any potential trade scenario. Despite his superior athletic ability, the Raptors have become increasingly frustrated with Ross, and are allegedly looking for ways to get his $10 million salary off the books for the upcoming campaign.
Of course, this would require the Nuggets being willing to take on board the talented but mercurial 2013 Slam Dunk champion. However, they could be enticed by a combination of lowering their payroll and the front office reportedly not being too high on Faried anymore.
The second factor revolves around Faried himself. Even if he were to come to Toronto, his salary would still leave the Raptors above the cap limit.
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As such, it could be a case of Ujiri asking the 2011 NABC Defensive Player of the Year to renegotiate his contract. One possibility involves lowering his annual average initially, but balancing this by offering more years and back-loading the contract.
This could prove enticing to Faried, especially with his apparent eagerness to get out of Denver. As recently reported by Jack Windham of inquisitr.com, he is considering asking for a trade, in part due to the Nuggets wanting him to accept a reduced role for the upcoming season.
Overall, there is no way of knowing if Ujiri is considering the Newark, New Jersey native as an option at this time. However, if the Raptors are serious about improving the power forward position, Faried is at least worth a look.
Next: Raptors reportedly interested in Nerlens Noel
How much interest do you have in going after Kenneth Faried? Do you see him as a realistic solution to upgrade the Raptors power forward position, or would you prefer to look elsewhere? Let us know in the comments section below.