Toronto Raptors: 5 options for pick No. 23 in 2017 NBA Draft

With the 2017 NBA Draft nearly a week away, the Toronto Raptors front office is likely narrowing in on targets for the No. 23 overall pick. Here are five players the team should consider targeting. 

For multiple reasons, the Toronto Raptors find themselves in an awkward position with the 2017 NBA Draft coming up.

First off, they hold the 23rd overall pick in the draft, a strange position given the composition of this draft class. About 20 players this year are almost guaranteed first-round selections. Then there’s another 20 or even 30 who could go as high as the mid-first or as low as the late-second round. As a result, the Raptors have a draft slot where players are extremely difficult to differentiate.

Second, the franchise itself is in flux. A free agent, Kyle Lowry could leave Toronto this summer to sign elsewhere, which would likely plunge the Raptors into a full-blown rebuild. But it’s not just Lowry. Serge Ibaka, P.J. Tucker, and Patrick Patterson all enter free agency on July 1. Without a clear franchise direction, drafting becomes more difficult.

All that said, the fundamentals of drafting remain very much the same. “Best player available” happens to be the best strategy available. It’s just impossible to know exactly who that player is.

I’ve compiled a list of five players — in no particular order — who may end up at the top of Toronto’s big board when it comes time to make a selection. These guys are some of the best players likely to be available at No. 23, but they also make sense in terms of fit and league trends.

Let’s get started!