If there’s one factor to remove from this draft lottery, it’s that tanking doesn’t assure the primary choose. The Toronto Raptors had been among the many groups tanking to enhance their possibilities of touchdown the primary choose within the 2025 NBA draft. Nonetheless, they not solely did not safe the primary choose but additionally dropped two spots, choosing ninth as an alternative.
Toronto will likely be effective regardless of lacking out on the prospect of drafting Cooper Flagg. They’ve an excellent core with Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, Brandon Ingram and Jakob Poeltl plus the persevering with developments of their first- and second-year gamers of Gradey Dick, Ja’Kobe Walter, Jamal Shead, and Jonathan Mogbo result in their postseason success.
Can the Raptor go to the playoffs subsequent season?
Toronto can simply be a top-five contender within the Jap Convention. The Milwaukee Bucks is probably not a postseason crew attributable to Damian Lillard being out for many of subsequent season, plus Giannis Antetokounmpo might ask for a commerce in the summertime. The Philadelphia 76ers is probably not playoff contenders since there are nonetheless questions on Joel Embiid’s well being.
The one groups I see which can be higher than the Raptors subsequent season are the New York Knicks, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Indiana Pacers, and the Celtics, regardless of dropping Jayson Tatum, as a result of they’re nonetheless an excellent crew with him.
What do the Raptors do with their choose?
The good thing about Toronto securing the ninth choose is that it gives the crew with flexibility. By this, I imply they will commerce this choose to boost the crew, whether or not by buying a useful function participant or an all-star caliber participant.
Toronto might additionally select to maintain the choose and draft somebody like Derik Queen or Khaman Maluach. They might use one other middle, and each gamers are able to taking part in on the 5. Moreover, the Raptors would possibly take into account drafting a degree guard equivalent to Jeremiah Fears, Kasparas Jakucionis, or Jase Richardson to play behind Quickley and Shead.
Lacking out on the chance to draft Flagg sucks but it surely isn’t just like the Toronto want him the best way different franchises want him. It could be to have on the crew, however the Raptors have already got their franchise participant in Barnes and an All-Star in Ingram.
And so they have already got a stable crew for subsequent season that can embody the ninth choose whether or not they determine to commerce it in alternate for a veteran participant or hold the choose and draft a younger prospect. Not having Flagg isn’t altering that. So, regardless of lacking out on the Flagg sweepstakes, the Raptors will likely be effective.
