One month.
That’s all the time between us and the trade deadline as of today. The day will be here before we know it. One month, 30 days, and roughly 724 hours. That’s it.
A lot can happen in that short a time, especially with 30 teams working with a deadline. Some teams will look to add in the continual arms race towards competing for an NBA Championship, while others will most certainly turn their attention towards ensuring the highest pick possible.
Those aren’t ground breaking facts. It’s the reality of the entire NBA calendar. Several teams will add in an attempt to be great (or greater when it comes to the top teams), and several will sell in an attempt to increase their odds at winning the NBA Draft Lottery. We’ve seen this repeatedly as NBA fans. We know this is what will happen for some and that many will simply stand as it.
The surprise isn’t in what each team’s trade goals are, the surprise is in the trades themselves. We have little idea as to what players will be made available and who will actually be moved, and even less of an idea as to where they will end up. It’s truly one of the most fun times to be an NBA fan, because there is an element of gambling and risk that is involved.
Will it work? Will the trade help a team toward their goal? Will chemistry be impacted on a contender? Will a player be able to fit within a new team’s system?
We don’t know any of these things until we actually see it unfold before us, and each week brings the likelihood of a random trade that much closer.
What we do know is that Masai Ujiri has earned the trust of Raptors fans, and likely the fear of some General Managers and Owners (Hi, Dolan!) around the league. He has traded a star like Carmelo Anthony for a New York ransom. He traded Rudy Gay for a series of role players and cap flexibility. He traded Kyle Lowry. Ujiri turned Greivis Vasquez into Norman Powell and a first round pick. And he even managed to steal three draft picks for Andrea Bargnani.
Masai will assuredly try to improve the Raptors as they try and return to the Eastern Conference Finals and aim at closing the gap between themselves and the Cleveland Cavaliers, but a trade might just not be there. Perhaps the asking price is simply too much for too little gain. Or no proper fits are available? Or he has bigger fish in mind.
The Raptors may play out the season with the exact roster that we see before us, and there are worse things that could happen.
With the recent loss to Philadelphia, the complete no-show that was the Charlotte game, and the collapse against Phoenix, some fan expectations have seemingly gone into high gear about the need for a trade. Not a hope for a trade, but a NEED for a trade.
And while a trade could be helpful, I for one hope that Masai doesn’t have that same thought, and I don’t think he would. Need is about desperation, and desperation can cause mistakes.
New York felt desperate to add a star before Brooklyn could, so they traded a ransom for Melo.
Milwaukee was desperate for a veteran point guard to help their young players be competitive, so they traded a series of draft picks for Vasquez.
New York desperately wanted a big man who could shoot, so they lost their minds when it Masai sent them video of Bargnani’s 13 game magic act.
A trade could help in meeting their goals on the season, but Toronto doesn’t NEED to make a trade. Desperation is dangerous, while patience may win the day.
