A few teams around the NBA have cut ties and formed new ones, the Raptors are part of that.
Juancho Hernangomez, who was very well liked by the team and organization, has been waived. Immediately after that news came out, news of Will Barton’s signing with the Raptors came out as well. Obviously, the Raptors made these decisions in concert with one another, and Hernangomez’s departure makes room for Barton’s arrival.
On it’s face, this is an exchange of size and some defense, for some shooting and ball handling. Hernangomez hasn’t been able to hit shots this season (25-percent from three), and despite some improved defense and heady cutting, he couldn’t carve out a spot in the rotation. Barton, for what it’s worth, is shooting 38-percent from downtown over 40 games and has historically shot the ball quite well. He also brings additional ball handling. The drawback is obviously the defense, but perhaps the Raptors feel like this trade off is more tenable because of the presence of Jakob Poeltl.
Expect Barton to get some run over the next little while.
