Raptors will be looking for bargains in free agency this year

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When Masai Ujiri was hired as Toronto Raptors general manager in 2013 the team had won just 57 combined games over the previous two seasons, missed the playoffs in five straight and the leading scorer was talented but flawed wing Rudy Gay.

There are some parallels with Bobby Webster’s first season in charge, which begins now, with NBA free agency opening at 6 p.m. ET Monday.

These Raptors have won 55 games in two years under Darko Rajakovic, and have been out of the post-season mix four of the last five years, with a leading scorer in RJ Barrett who is talented but not without flaws of his own

Ujiri’s first Raptors group had Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan and Jonas Valanciunas on board already, along with an enigma in Andrea Bargnani and some talented veterans.

This one arguably has more talent on hand, with Scottie Barnes, Brandon Ingram, Jakob Poeltl, Barrett and Immanuel Quickley the most recognizable names.

Ujiri and his staff, which included a young Bobby Webster and Dan Tolzman, now the general manager and assistant general manager of the club and chief decision makers in the wake of Ujiri’s departure, didn’t waste much time in making changes.

Bargnani was moved within two months of Ujiri’s arrival for a package that ended up yielding Poeltl, drafted ninth overall three years later. It’s still one of the best deals in franchise history.

Five months later, Gay was traded to Sacramento in a stunner that unexpectedly started the ‘We the North’ era, with Lowry and DeRozan taking off when surrounded by a different mix.

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Don’t expect Webster, Tolzman and the rest of Toronto’s front office to make major moves like those ones anytime soon, though Barrett and/or Ochai Agbaji could be traded at some point mainly to ease future salary cap concerns. Toronto has only paid the luxury tax twice in 30 years and though Rogers, Inc. should not cheap out here (MLSE president Keith Pelley interestingly mentioned the team was at the luxury tax three times in last week’s media conference on Ujiri’s departure), we’ll believe they’ll pay the tax when they actually do (the team would have the full season to get under if they chose to go that route by moving Barrett, Agbaji, or other players).

Additionally, the Raptors at some point need to create some runway for intriguing sophomore wing Ja’Kobe Walter and Gradey Dick, who still has untapped potential despite an underwhelming first two NBA seasons.

Toronto is not in a position to add a significant free agent though because the first apron (a more punitive part of the luxury tax) is not an area the Raptors should approach. The team badly needs a backup centre behind Poeltl, but they’ll have to find some luck in the bargain bin the way Ujiri did back in 2015 when he inked Bismack Biyombo on a steal of a deal.

Toronto won’t be in the mix for the likes of Myles Turner, Naz Reid (reportedly re-signing with Minnesota), Brook Lopez, or Clint Capela (a one-time draft target of the team), but maybe Orlando’s Mo Wagner, Boston’s Luke Kornet, Indiana’s Thomas Bryant or San Antonio’s Charles Bassey would be positional and financial fits?

It’s not an interesting year for free agency league-wide, with few superstars available and those up for grabs already deciding to stay put (though the cryptic comments Sunday from LeBron James’s camp have spiced things up. Could the best player of this generation be on the move yet again?)

@WolstatSun