Toronto Raptors Sign Jared Sullinger to One-Year Deal

The Toronto Raptors have reached a one-year agreement with unrestricted free agent Jared Sullinger.

It’s been a quiet offseason up until this point, but the Toronto Raptors have made a signing! Rejoice, Raptors fans.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Veritcal, and Jared Sullinger’s personal Twitter account, the Raptors have agreed to a one-year deal with the former Ohio State Buckeye. ESPN’s Marc Stein reports that the deal is in the $6 million range.

Unless the Raptors move a player, the most they can offer is the $5.6 million mid-level exception they own. They could also renounce their rights to Jason Thompson, Luis Scola and Nando De Colo to sign Sullinger with cap space, but it would make more sense for them to use their mid-level exception and maintain asset control with Scola, Thompson and De Colo.

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When you look at how this free agent class has played out, you have to tip your hat to Masai Ujiri for being patient. A player like Sullinger, or less than him, has commanded anywhere from $8-10 million this summer.

So taking a one-year flyer on Sullinger at close to $6 million is a nice value pickup for the Raptors. Although Boston had to part ways with him because they didn’t have room on their roster, Sullinger does have his issues.

The most glaring one is his weight. If he can keep that in order, he should have every opportunity to succeed in Toronto.

He might not be a perfect fit with the Raptors, but he does possess a ton of talent and potential, which is something he regularly flashed during his high school and college days. He’ll likely pencil in as a power forward with the Raptors, and perhaps even a stretch-five when they play small ball.

Who starts between him and Patrick Patterson can be figured out later, but much like Patterson, Sullinger is a player who helps with spacing on offence. He’s a career 27.6 percent shooter from three during his career, which isn’t efficient, but I’d imagine the Raptors will allow him to shoot from the corners more, like we saw Scola do last year.

If that’s the case, his three-point percentage will likely rise. Defensively, he’s average at best, but his rebounding skills are there. Playing alongside a traditional centre, like Jonas Valanciunas or Jakob Poeltl, will be an adjustment for Sullinger, since he has a tendency to play outside of the paint and setup for long twos, which is something the Raptors will also have to work on with him.

Next: Raptors Officially Sign Poeltl and Siakam

Overall, it’s a low-risk signing for the Raptors and has the potential to pay dividends should Sullinger get his weight under control and minimize his propensity to settle for long twos. It might not be the flashiest name, and it’s still a gamble, but it’s a gamble well worth taking if you’re the Raptors.