UPDATE: Anderson is reportedly signing in Houston for 4 years, $80M.
As literal billions of dollars fly around on the opening day of free agency, the Toronto Raptors, who opened things off with a near-max deal for DeMar DeRozan, have been mostly quiet.
That’s not due to inaction, apparently, but rather some stealthy or off-radar meetings. With most of the league focused on Mike Conley, Dwight Howard, Al Horford, and Kevin Durant, among others, the Raptors quietly met with veteran power forward Ryan Anderson.
According to Mark Medina of Los Angeles Daily News, that meeting took place at the Beverly Wilshire (likely where Dwane Casey was spotted chatting with Meyers Leonard). Medina likely has the inside scoop here because the Los Angeles Lakers are also believed to be interested in Anderson, as are the Houston Rockets, Sacramento Kings, Washington Wizards, and surely more. That list of suitors likely means Anderson’s asking price will be substantial, and rumors during the season had his annual salary pushing above $15 million and maybe into the $18-million range.
That would make him a tough fit for the Raptors, who only have about $5.3 million in cap space if they renounce all of their non-DeRozan free agents and delay the signing of DeRozan. That means they would need to somehow unload salary – likely Terrence Ross – either to create the requisite space to sign Anderson or to create a sign-and-trade scenario. (Sign-and-trades have little value to players in the current collective bargaining agreement, but there are occasional scenarios in which they can help a team recoup assets for an outgoing free agent while also allowing a player to better pick his destination). And even unloading Ross may not get them quite enough space, depending on exactly where Anderson’s demands are.
Still, if the Raptors were to maneuver into a position to land Anderson, that would more or less be it for the offseason, barring further trades (if they go the cap-clearing route, they’d lose their mid-level and bi-annual exceptions). Anderson would be a nice offensive fit as a stretch-four with deep range and a serious gravitational pull on defenses, something Spencer broke down this week. He’d help the offense and fit the prototype most people seem to want to fill, but he’d also be a really difficult fit defensively, where he lacks the strength or foot speed to guard on the block or in the pick-and-roll. For a team that already has a strong offense and is already losing their best frontcourt defender, Anderson may not be the ideal player type for the Raptors, all things considered.
At the same time, in this market with limited flexibility, the Raptors may be willing to simply add the talent they can and figure the rest out on the fly. Personally, that’s not the route I’d go, and I’ve never really loved the overall fit when people wanted him leading up to the trade deadline (and I’d rather have signed Mirza Teletovic at his three-year, $30-million price, as a contrast example), but I see the allure given the shooting.
At the very least, it’s nice to know the Raptors are being aggressive and taking meetings with players perceived to be out of their price range. It speaks to Masai Ujiri’s willingness to be creative and explore all options over the next few weeks, which is always encouraging.
