Frank Zicarelli has the latest on the hot topics surrounding the Toronto Raptors
The rebuilding Toronto Raptors have seen the emergence of Gradey Dick, while watching Jakob Poeltl turn into a potentially coveted trade asset.
All the while, the team has gone winless on the road.
Here are three pivotal questions — from our many Raptors readers — that can’t be easily answered.
What are the odds of Jakob Poeltl being traded?
In short, quite high for a big man who has reached a level no one, probably even Poeltl, could not have envisioned.
During his collegiate days, Poeltl did manage to post some monster games, but keep in mind he often faced smaller defenders and the ball was just as often in his hands.
This is Poeltl’s second stint with the Raptors, who used the centre as an asset along with DeMar DeRozan when it swung for the fences by acquiring Kawhi Leonard.
The rest, as they say, is history as the club won its first NBA championship in 2019.
When a potential second title can, if ever, be achieved is the kind of topic that can easily be summed up as yet to be determined. Under no circumstance are the Raptors poised to win a title now.
By the time the roster is even ready to contend, it’s highly likely Poeltl’s best days would be behind him, which neatly sums up the conundrum facing the Raptors.
On one side, his stock is as high as it ever has been. On the other side, his play warrants a longer run.
Injuries always are part of the NBA and Poeltl is coming off a season that highlighted his presence in the many games he missed.
When Poeltl was re-acquired by the Raptors, it was a complete misread of the landscape, a miscalculation that sent Toronto’s first-round pick to San Antonio.
Albeit, it was protected and at least the Raptors know they will have a first-round pick in next year’s draft and it’s fully protected.
The team tipped its hand in building around Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley with RJ Barrett as the third option. Poeltl, 29, does not fit the timeline. He is, however, the team’s biggest trade chip.
The likes of a Bruce Brown, Chris Boucher and even a Kelly Olynyk may eventually find new homes, but none will fetch as much as Poeltl.
The Raptors are young and probably don’t need a further infusion of youth while shooting always is coveted.
It remains to be seen if Poeltl can be used in a package to secure a perimeter threat who ideally would be able to defend. These players don’t exactly become available in trade discussions.
Then again, it’s not every day when a big flirts with that elusive 20-20 game, a feat Poeltl nearly pulled off, which would have vaulted him into the pantheon of Chris Bosh (who did it twice), and Popeye Jones, who managed to produce the franchise’s first 20-point, 20-rebound game.
What role will Gradey Dick embrace once the Raptors are fully healthy?
To begin with, the Raptors have yet to roll out their full complement of players.
So much of the season hinged on whether the Big 3 of Barnes, Quickley and Barrett can co-exist and how would this trio work for an extended stretch.
A glimpse was provided last season, but it was pretty short-lived following an injury to Barnes and the personal issues surrounding Quickley and Barrett.
This season’s break-out performer, hands down, has been Dick.
Keep in mind the Raptors don’t defend and play a brand of basketball that is very offensive-minded, a style that allows Dick to play with freedom.
He has taken advantage of the moment, but once Barnes and Quickley return, there will be fewer touches for Dick. His role will be defined on his perimeter presence.
When defenders force him off the three-point line, Dick will have to refine his ability to put the ball on the floor, create or take it to the rim.
He has a quick release, a flair and an offensive repertoire that only is expanding.
As long as Dick shows a capacity for making shots, there will always be a role for him on a team short on shooters.
In last week’s loss to visiting Detroit, the Raptors had the ball in Dick’s hands after Barrett made a great baseline pass, but Dick missed the open shot.
On the game’s final possession, the Raptors ran a play that had the ball in Dick’s hands. He took the inbound pass and one dribble later he heaved it. The shot missed and the Pistons escaped with the win.
Assuming the Raptors do reach the point of full health, Dick won’t be asked to take as many shots.
It does behoove the team to continue to showcase Dick, even it means fewer shots for Quickley and Barrett.
Dick has a high ceiling and under no circumstance should anything or anyone compromise his growth.
In a woeful Eastern Conference, why can’t the Raptors win a road game?
The East, indeed, is brutal.
Toronto’s win over visiting Indiana, in a weird way because the Raptors are in the midst of a rebuild, improved its chances of making the play-in tournament.
The victory over an underwhelming Pacers team was Toronto’s third of the season. No away wins have been produced.
The Raptors will be in Cleveland on Sunday to play a Cavs team that had its unbeaten run to start the season snapped in Boston. It’s then off to Detroit in a rematch of last Friday night’s tip.
Toronto’s coming four-game trip will then feature dates in New Orleans and Miami.
Eight road games have been played, eight losses, including an 0-5 trip that began in Denver and ended in Milwaukee.
The two themes that have played out include too many turnovers and so little defence.
The Raptors have given themselves a chance to win on the road with near misses in the Mile High City, L.A. against the host Clippers and more recently against the Boston Celtics, who needed a Jayson Tatum buzzer-beater deep beyond the three-point arc in overtime.
Limit turnovers, defend better and end quarters the right way, and the Raptors will earn that elusive first road win.
Winning in Cleveland will be tough.
The Cavs helped usher in Toronto’s season opener at Scotiabank Arena by thoroughly pasting the home side.
Eventually, a road win will be produced.
Having said that, it’s quite possible the Raptors will be winless for the balance of the 2024 calendar.
The team’s road woes are likely to reach the double-digit figure, even if turnovers are kept to a minimum, even if defence gets played.