Should the Toronto Raptors be NBA trade deadline buyers or sellers?

Should the Toronto Raptors buy at the NBA trade deadline?

Now that the Raptors are back to their rightful place as an almost certain playoff team, team president Masai Ujiri has some decisions on his hands. Being first or second-round fodder for the Milwaukee Bucks, Brooklyn Nets or Philadelphia 76ers doesn’t do them any good and making sure they’re nowhere near that mediocre rank is critical.

To do that, they may have to move some pieces. Kyle Lowry seems like the obvious one to move, and the Sixers themselves are rumored to be interested in him. A Lowry trade seems more like a sell than a buy, and dealing with the Sixers seems like a good way of setting themselves to get wrecked in the playoffs by an angry Kyle Lowry playing the series of his life.

O.G. Anunoby seems untouchable, as is Fred VanVleet. Chris Boucher has value, but he’s also their most reliable center. Stanley Johnson could be a surprise trade chip, but maybe he has more value to the Raptors in the playoffs as a defensive specialist.

Pascal Siakam leads the team in scoring, and he might be the key element in a trade for a star like Bradley Beal, although it’s going to take more than Siakam alone to move the needle for the Washington Wizards.

Still, if the Raptors can indeed construct a deal for a top-level star like Beal with a package focused on Siakam, that’s probably going to be the way they have to go. Norman Powell is having a great season and could be a piece as well, and getting Terrence Davis off the team would be a pure bonus, although the Wizards are hard-capped and his inclusion could complicate things.

For the record, a swap of Siakam and Powell for Beal and Ish Smith does work on the TradeNBA trade machine. It stands to reason that the Wizards would want a haul of draft picks in addition to these players, however.