Part 14 of offseason guides brings us to two teams who are in similar situations. Both the New Orleans Pelicans and Toronto Raptors are trying to figure out their franchise’s directions and both still have some difficult moves to make before the end of the offseason.
The Toronto Raptors made two interesting moves this offseason They extended both Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley this offseason. Barnes signed a rookie extension for 5 years, 224 million dollars and the contract also has the potential to be up to 270 million dollars if he makes an All-NBA team. Quickley signed a 5 year, 175 million dollar deal after being acquired in a mid-season trade from the Knicks. Both offer real potential for the Raptors getting better. Quickley is a lighting fast point guard. He had stints off the bench with the Knicks and showed he’s able to run a team even if it was with the second unit. He was traded in exchange for OG Anunoby because the Raptors felt like he would fit their current roster timeline. He’s 23 years old and has shown a constant level of improvement. The Knicks win now scenario doesn’t necessarily fit with Quickley as he still has a level of improvement to tap into, but his flashes have definitely shown he’s got some serious game. He’s been great on the ball as a scorer and playmaker. He needs a little improvement in his reads in the pick and roll, but he showed lots of flashes with the Knicks to suggest he can take on a heavier ball handler role. Scottie Barnes was the second Raptors player to receive a large contract extension. He’s their best player on both sides of the ball and he is a perfect player to build a franchise around. He’s shown improvement in his offensive game since he was drafted, something that was a serious question mark coming out of college, and his defense has been as good as advertised. Barnes took on a higher role of ball handler with the departure of Fred VanVleet to Houston and did very well. His reads in the pick and roll need some polishing, but he’s big enough, 6’ 9”, to be able to see over and around any defensive coverage. His shooting has shown improvement as he shot a career high 34.1% on 5 3pt attempts a game. Barnes made his first all star team as a replacement this past season validating his continuous improvement. The Raptor’s currently have two positions locked up for the future, at point guard with Quickley and small forward in Barnes, but they need to figure out the rest of the roster.
RJ Barrett and Gradey Dick are two other players on the roster that feel like they fit the timeline of the Raptors, but they especially do with Dick. He needs to show some improvement even after his rookie season. He shot 36.5% from 3 which as a rookie is good on close to 4 attempts a game. He’ll improve it with more time in the gym and is something Raptors fans should be very excited about. However, only shooting 49.5% from 2 is a bit concerning even for a rookie. Given he doesn’t play on the ball a lot and has a sensible IQ to make high level cuts from the corner and be able to finish around the basket with a 6’ 7” frame. He’ll need to show some improvement in his ball handling and touch if Raptor fans want to feel confident in the former 13th overall pick from just one season ago. As for Barrett, he struggled early on with the Knicks as he shot 42.3% from the field, 33.1% from three, and only 46.5% from two. However, once he joined the Raptors, he shot 53% from the field, 39% from three and 60% from two. A knock on him early on in his career was his inability to shoot a high percentage from two. He attempted nearly 11 shots from 2 and struggled to shoot close to 45% on those shots. His size and frame at 6’ 6” 214 lbs. suggests he can improve this number and he’ll need to show he can shoot better inside the three point line.
As far as more roster moves the Raptors can make, Bruce Brown is a trade asset the Raptors can use to lure some more future assets. Brown has an expiring 23 million dollar contract and the Raptors won’t likely re-sign him after next season. It'll be interesting to see the kind of attention he generates as we get close to the trade deadline this upcoming season. Other needs the Raptors have is signing a point guard to back up Quickley as they lack depth as this position with Quickley being the only real point guard on the team. Along with a point guard they have a desperate need for a backup center. The Raptors in the past have signed lots of lengthy wings to try and play as a big lineup, but it seems they are trying to go in a different direction once Nick Nurse left to coach the 76ers. Overall, there’s a lot to like about the Raptors. The young core of Barrett, Quickley, and Barnes is an exciting trio to build around and they have a decent amount of trade assets in the future as they have their own first round pick for the next seven years. It’ll be interesting to see if the front office tries to tank if the season doesn’t go the way they anticipate, as the top of the 2025 draft class is loaded. There’s an equal chance that the Raptors are fighting for a 7 or 8 seed in the upcoming season.
The New Orleans Pelicans have had a challenging last five years. They have a talented roster, but they haven’t been able to stay healthy at key times, notably Zion Williamson. Before Williamson was drafted 1st overall by the franchise they had success with Anthony Davis, but never were able to make it past the second round of the playoffs. They had some frisky fun when they traded Davis for a huge haul of Lakers players and picks that they felt could be competitive in the Western Conference, but it hasn’t gone that way for them unfortunately. Various injuries to Williamson have been a setback to the improvement of the team. He’s their best player and needs to be on the court if they’re going to have any success. He’s missed more than half of the Pelican’s games. He had 40 points in the play-in game against the Lakers before injuring his hamstring and eventually missing the rest of the playoffs. Williamson is a unique blend of size and athleticism. He’s a 6’ 6” bowling ball with a 43 inch vertical. He’s a freight train when driving to the basket and is virtually impossible to stop when he gets to his left hand. He averaged 27 points per game in just his second season and was named an all star in a year he played 61 games. Williamson has shown the capabilities to be a top 15 talent in the NBA, but he has issues staying healthy and staying in shape. If Williamson is able to improve these two areas, the Pelicans will instantly be better. As far as the other star on the team, it's a tricky situation with him.
Brandon Ingram is eligible for a 4 year, 208 million dollar deal, but offering him this will tie up roughly 145 million dollars between him, Tre Murray, CJ McCollum and Zion Williamson. Overall, the future of Ingram is in the balance currently with the Pelicans. He struggled mightily this past postseason after returning from injury and he has missed a lot of games the last three years after playing in 55, 54, and 61 games. The other part is does Ingram fit with the current team. Currently, Tre Murray is a little bit better of a fit next to McCollum and Williamson compared to Ingram as the defensive rating went from 116 points per 100 possessions, compared to 109 point per possession when Murphy is on the floor with those two. Ultimately, I think the Pelicans should look for a trade before conceding to giving him an extension. The only issue with that is, will it affect current team relations if he’s playing on an expiring deal?
Outside of Williamson and Ingram, the Pelicans are an interesting team. They have two fun wings in Herb Jones and Tre Murphy. Jones is an All-defensive caliber player and has improved his offense the last couple of seasons. He’s 6’ 8” with a 7’ 0” wingspan. He has marvelous defensive instincts and oftentimes guards the other team's best offensive player. Murphy was an absolute steal in his draft class. He’s an amazing shooter, something the Pelicans really need. He’s one of their only spot up shooters and can help space the floor to free up Williamson and McCollum on drives to the basket. At this point, Murphy's current value for the Pelicans is higher than Ingram’s. He fits better next to Williamson both on offense and defense and his current contract is smaller than the potential 50+ million per year Ingram would make if he is offered.
Right now the Pelicans are at another player cross road. They’ve had some amazing players walk through their organization from Jrue Holiday to Anthony Davis and Demarcus Cousins. Ultimately, they haven’t been able to maintain a good lineup to see some success in the super tough Western Conference. Trading Ingram for pieces that fit better next to Williamson feels like the right move, but putting trust in his health is super risky based on his past injury history. Overall, trading Ingram could be a smart move or it could backfire. Whatever the front office chooses it’ll need to be soon as tensions between Ingram and the front office could boil over into next season and result in more drama within the franchise.
As always feel free to leave a comment below and any news that takes place after the release of this article will be updated prior to the start of next season.
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