Raptors mailbag: Centre position, pandemic fallout, Masai Ujiri’s future, more – The Athletic
What odds do you give on the Raptors re-signing Ujiri? Do you think if Ujiri wanted to leave that MLSE could convince him to stay long enough to oversee the transition to the next president? — Martin & Marcus
What I took away from Ujiri’s news conference is that if he’s not going to be around longer term, he’s doing everything he can to make sure the succession plan is in place. New deals for Bobby Webster (they’re close), Dan Tolzman (status unclear), Teresa Resch (status unclear) and Nick Nurse (check) would lock in his leadership team for the foreseeable future, which I think accomplishes two things: It makes sure Ujiri’s people are taken care of and it makes sure the Raptors are in good hands if he transitions out.
Now, whether he transitions out is a question I’m not in a position to answer. I think Eric did a good job of pondering if Ujiri might have eyes on something bigger than running an NBA team next, whether that’s at a league, union, African or non-basketball level altogether. At this point, I would be surprised if Ujiri left the Raptors for another team but not surprised if he left the Raptors, period.
Raptors’ Masai Ujiri defends Pascal Siakam amid criticism, racist attacks – Yahoo!
“We tried to understand what he went through, and we talked extensively. Honestly, it wasn’t even just me. Kyle, Fred (VanVleet), those guys all did an incredible job. Coach Nick Nurse, Bobby (Webster), everybody stood by Pascal,” Ujiri said. “There’s something about that bubble that brought all of us together, and that was truly unique to me. For us, finding out the struggles that he had with going through the COVID period, and being confined to a space, and where he was with his rhythm and trying to get back into it,” Ujiri said.
“I know Pascal, we all know Pascal, sometimes we need this almost like a kick in the butt, some kind of adversity, and he’s going to bounce back 100 percent from this. He acknowledged it, you guys saw it, he felt like he let the team down, and we feel that we would just stay by him, stick with him as always,” he added.
Whatever is the case, the Raptors are confident that Siakam will regain his confidence. Siakam was named to the All-NBA Second Team this week in recognition of the success he had prior to the COVID-19 shutdown, and while it’s clear that Siakam still needs more development and refinement to produce at the highest levels, there is a definitive track record for success. If nothing else, Siakam has shown to be an incredible worker, he improves every season, and with a long offseason ahead of him, the Raptors are expecting yet another jump.
“Let’s not forget now about how Pascal helped us win a championship. Pascal has shown every bit of being courageous, being a fighter, being a competitor, and being a winner. He’s shown every bit of that, and we value that, we see that, we know him as a person, so he’s going to bounce back through this and we support him in any way that we can,” Ujiri said.
Right away, looking at the free agents there, that amount looks like maybe just enough to fit VanVleet and no one else.
The good news is the Raptors are able to buy themselves a little room by structuring that long term contract a little differently than usual. Contracts have a maximum raise amount — for players with Bird Rights (the Raptors have full Bird Rights for all of the above except Rondae), that maximum raise (or drop) from year to year is set at eight percent of the first year salary of the contract.
So, for example, if Fred was to earn the biggest contract the Raptors could fit, they could structure it with a dip in year two before rising again thereafter, so that the second year stays at that $18.5 million number. Most contracts either stay flat, or just have raises every year — but teams can be creative if they want to be. For example, a potential five-year VanVleet contract could be structured to look like this:
2020-21: 20.2M
2021-22: 18.5M
2022-23: 20.2M
2023-24: 21.8M
2024-25: 23.4MThat makes for an average salary of just under $21 million for VanVleet, with a total compensation of $104 million. It’s also a very competitive offer even if the market for VanVleet is very strong. To compare: a max offer for Fred from another team would be $117 million over 4 years, or an average salary of $29.3 million. That would be out of reach for the Raptors, but I don’t think they’d be interested in giving him a max salary anyway. I also don’t expect such an offer will be out there in any case (not even from the hapless Knicks). Recent rumours (and common sense) would indicate Fred is more likely to be in that low 20 million range in terms of average salary. So at least the Raptors would be in a position to make a competitive offer for him to stay.
It certainly makes the scenario where they can afford a guy like, hah, Kawhi Leonard pretty far-fetched. It is very doubtful Fred’s market would be anywhere near $13 million — he’s played too well over the past year. Even with the second year dip scheme above, over a five-year deal the best Toronto could offer to meet that threshold is a 14.7 million average, which I think would be considered the floor for a deal for VanVleet. There are too many teams that should (and will) be interested for that low-ball outcome to be likely.
Now, if the Raptors do get outbid for Fred, and he walks (this would be problematic for building the roster but not a complete disaster), Toronto would at least reserve some ability to then offer contracts with some term to their other free agents.
Raptors financial magic could bring back Fred VanVleet at about $20 million a year | The Star
It’ll be costly, but it can be done. The Raptors could work some financial magic and pay VanVleet somewhere around $20 million (U.S.) a year — he made about $9.3 million this season — and still retain a maximum salary slot for 2021, when the free-agent market will be rife with high-profile stars.
It might cost them Norm Powell to do that, or they would have to convince Powell to opt out of the last year of his deal and rework something, but it can be done even in these complicated financial times.
The expectation is that the 2020-21 salary cap will remain at its 2019-20 level of $109 million, thanks to the monetary bath the NBA took because of the coronavirus pandemic.
And after hearing all season how he was going to hit the salary jackpot, VanVleet’s entirely aware of the monetary realities. He had time to really think about them in four months of COVID-19 idleness after the season was put on hold in March.
“I wasn’t sure what was going to happen with the league. I wasn’t sure about next year with the cap and what the numbers would look like, so it put a lot of things in perspective,” he said after the season ended.
“In general, it changed the way you would view everything and makes you appreciate things a lot more. So, like I said, I think that people have been talking to me all year about how much money I’m going to make this summer and I’m a skeptical person, so I’ve got to wait and see to believe it.”
One thing that may come into play — and no one from either side of the talks is speaking about negotiations yet — is the possibility that VanVleet takes a short-term deal, to allow more money to get into the pot and expand the possibilities. A one-and-one contract, where he’d have the chance to opt out, might allow him greater options in 2021 than exist in 2020.
Toronto Raptors: Should Fred VanVleet be a priority this offseason? – Sir Charles in Charge
On the surface, re-signing VanVleet should seem like a no-brainer. However, the task that Masai Ujiri will have to manage this offseason is trying to maintain top-tier competitiveness while also keeping complete flexibility heading into next summer (or offseason).
The good news is that Toronto’s cap sheet is relatively clean head into 2021 at the moment. The only “big” contract that they’ll have on the books is Pascal Siakam‘s. After that, though, the Raptors are fairly clear. Of course, that’s depending on what they do this offseason.
VanVleet likely will be seeking a multi-year contract, one that will likely pay him between $18-22 million per season. That’s a manageable deal for the Raptors but could limit Ujiri in their pursuit of Serge Ibaka and other free agents to improve this team’s roster – short of Ibaka willing to take a big-money, one year deal for next season.
On the other hand, the Raptors could bypass re-signing VanVleet, letting him sign with another team and maintain complete flexibility for 2021. If the Raptors sign VanVleet and are looking to re-sign Lowry after next season, it could put Toronto in a bad place heading into free agency. Unless, of course, Lowry is willing to take a significant pay cut.
NBA 2020 Free Agent Rankings: Serge Ibaka, Goran Dragic And The Second Tier – Forbes
11. Serge Ibaka – Unrestricted – Toronto Raptors:
Due to Marc Gasol’s alarming regression, the Raps needed Ibaka to step up in a significant way this past season, and the big man did just that. In his 11th season, Ibaka averaged a career-high 15.4 points to go along with 8.2 rebounds and 1.3 made three-pointers. In the 27 games he started in 2019-20, he averaged 18.3 points and 9.2 rebounds while shooting over 55% from the floor and 43.7% from downtown. A consistent two-way performer his whole career, Ibaka is the only player in NBA history to make more than 500 3-pointers and block more than 1,500 shots.
Which 2020 NBA Free Agents Will Get the Worst Contracts? | Bleacher Report
Serge Ibaka had a solid season for the Toronto Raptors in 2019-20, starting just under half his 55 games, averaging 15.4 points and shooting 38.5 percent from three.
In fact, he may have been good enough to convince some team to pay him eight figures per year over the next three or four seasons. But such a deal might not age well.
Ibaka is heading into his age-31 season. That certainly doesn’t mean he’s over the hill, but the post-prime part of his career is here—or at least very close.
Beyond his age, career lows in blocks per game (0.8) and block percentage (3.0) may signal a decline, too. And his impact on the defensive end of the floor seems to have gone wherever the blocks did.
This season, Toronto allowed 3.7 more points per 100 possessions when Ibaka was on the floor, giving him a defensive rating swing that ranked in the 23rd percentile.
If he’s not moving the needle defensively, Ibaka’s contributions could be sporadic at best. He was near the magic threshold of 40 percent from three this season, but he was at 29.0 percent in 2018-19.
If the blocks continue to fall, that wild-card shooting ability would become his calling card.
In regards to his key free agents, Ujiri noted that they are a “priority,” but didn’t dive into too much detail about the team’s plans, though that isn’t exactly a surprise. This will be an interesting summer for Ujiri and Co. as he tries to set up the best possible future for the team, despite the fact that he might not be a part of it. And all while navigating the uncertainties created by the coronavirus pandemic, including an unclear timeline for the 2020-21 season, and major questions surrounding the salary cap moving forward.
Ujiri has been with the Raptors since 2013, when he signed as the GM shortly after winning Executive of the Year for his work with the Denver Nuggets. In 2018, he assumed more responsibility, taking on the role of president of basketball operations. During his time with the franchise, he’s turned the Raptors into a perennial playoff team and notably swung the blockbuster trade for Kawhi Leonard that helped Toronto win their first title in franchise history.
While he may still remain with the Raptors, and has plenty of time to discuss an extension, his comments on Thursday will only fuel suspicion that he may move on when his deal is up. Given his resume, he could have his pick of jobs across the league if he decides to take on a new challenge, but the most notable possibility involves the New York Knicks.
The Knicks have been after Ujiri for years, and those atop the organization are reportedly “obsessed” with him, according to Ian Begley of SNY last year. It’s not clear whether he has any interest in going there, and the prospect of working under James Dolan isn’t exactly enticing. From a neutral observer perspective, however, Ujiri trying to fix the Knicks would be a fascinating prospect.
For now, though, his focus will be figuring out what to do with this Raptors team, and that’s a big enough challenge for the moment.
Send me any Raptors related content that I may have missed. Please. Getting lean already. rapsfan@raptorsrrepublic.com
1-2
