Toronto Raptors find solution for Goran Dragic in quiet trade deadline

While the Toronto Raptors did not make a big splash at the NBA Trade Deadline, they made sure to solve their biggest issue with Goran Dragic.

It was certainly an eventful NBA Trade Deadline day but the Toronto Raptors only made what many would call a minor deal but a necessary move involving Goran Dragic.

Coming to Toronto are Thad Young and the Detroit Pistons’ second-round pick with Drew Eubanks getting waived. Really the important part of this deal is moving on from Dragic who was not a factor since he was no longer with the team.

Understandably, there was some disappointment that the Raptors couldn’t use Dragic to make a bigger move as there were reports that the team was considering players with term attached to their deal. General manager Bobby Webster alluded to that in his address to the reporters.

"“There were some options to take on additional money. Ultimately, those deals fell through, and then, a couple of other examples, the money went out so far it was sort of risky so we walked away from those,” Webster said via Sports Illustrated. “Everyone always says it, but you don’t know what really slips out of your grasp because you don’t know what was there.”"

It seems like there were deals the Raptors were working on that didn’t come to fruition which would make sense when you consider how early they pulled the trigger on the trade involving Dragic.

What’s important to remember here is that the Raptors probably wanted to avoid getting into the luxury tax but probably want to make more additions by converting two-way deals into NBA contracts or dip into the buyout market.

Did the Toronto Raptors miss out on a deal for Kristaps Porzingis?

It has been made known that the Dallas Mavericks were interested in acquiring Dragic and it was his preferred trade destination (he’ll likely get there when he gets bought out) and apparently Toronto looked at making a big splash.

ESPN’s Bobby Marks said on The Lowe Post podcast that Dallas was looking to offload Kristaps Porzingis’ deal and were trying to see if a deal could have worked out with the Raptors. This was echoed by Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer but it’s unclear how serious both clubs were in figuring out the logistics of the deal as ESPN’s Tim McMahon explained that Dallas wanted something substantial in return.

In the end, Porzingis was moved to the Washington Wizards with the Mavericks acquiring Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans with Dallas also including a 2022 second-round pick in the deal.

The 7-foot-3 Latvian has had a tough time with injuries during his tenure with the Mavericks so for the Raptors to give up anything substantial like Pascal Siakam or OG Anunoby would have been tough to accept. With Porzingis earning a max deal, the implications of his deal would have impacted the Raptors’ financial situation considering Siakam, Fred VanVleet, Gary Trent Jr., free agents after the 2023-24 season.

Now the Raptors will look to see if they can add any rotation pieces if any intriguing players reach the open market. Then they can rethink their roster in the off-season when there will likely be more deals to be made.

What were your thoughts on the Raptors trade deadline? Do you think they made the right move with Dragic? Should they have done more? Let us know in the comments below.