Toronto Raptors: 5 reasons for blowing it up

1. LeBron’s league

It’s that simple. Despite being 32, LeBron James has proven that he is still at the top of his game. And quite simply, he doesn’t show any signs of slowing down.

Just ask the Raptors, who were on the receiving end of the 4-0 sweep inflicted on them by James’ Cleveland Cavaliers.

Take Kyle Lowry’s comments following Game 3 of their recent series:

"“They’ve got LeBron James. Nobody’s closing the gap on him. I mean, that’s it right there: They’ve got LeBron James and nobody’s closing the gap on him. “I don’t know when his prime is going to stop. I don’t think it’s going to stop anytime soon. I think he’ll be able to continue what he’s doing for a long time."

Following the season sweep, DeMar Derozan added his two cents:

"“He seems a lot faster and quicker this year from last year. That extra hop step, everything out there on the court. You look on the scoresheet after the game and he’s still playing 42 minutes a game. It’s incredible for somebody with that amount of mileage on him to be able to come back and seem faster and quicker that next year. “"

Considering the situation facing the Raptors, hearing this from your two All-Star players does not bode well if the front office is thinking of reloading with their core group as currently constituted.

Instead, Ujiri and his staff should be emphasizing that the time is right to blow things up. James isn’t going away any time soon. Teams such as the Milwaukee Bucks and the Philadelphia 76ers could be juggernauts in the coming seasons with the young talent at their disposal.  Also, the Boston Celtics look set to not only compete in the Eastern Conference Finals, but also possibly draw the No.1 overall pick in this year’s draft.

The easy decision would be to re-sign Lowry, Ibaka, Tucker and co. and simply think that by showing up that anything could happen.

But taking two steps back in order three steps forward should be firmly at the top of the Raptors’ line of thinking.

And this means a complete blow-up.

This should be centered around:

• Letting Lowry walk
• Trading DeRozan
• Trading Valanciunas
• Letting Ibaka walk
• Firing head coach Dwane Casey
• Letting Patrick Patterson and P.J. Tucker walk

A suggested core of Griffin, Holiday, Crowder and Rivers would be a very good starting point for a rebuild. A stretch-5 would naturally be the next important target. The Raptors would also now possess two first round picks in a loaded 2017 draft.

Next: 5 potential landing spots for Kyle Lowry in free agency

While Urjiri has a number of options moving forward, standing pat shouldn’t be one of them.