Less Talked About Raptors Trade Targets Part 2: Chris Boucher

 Last night's game was actually pretty good and I'll explain why. The first half was competitive and we saw the Raptors play super hard on defense to keep the game tight going into the half. Halftime lined up perfectly with an extremely exciting 3rd quarter in the Cavs Thunder game then the Knicks talent started pulling away late in the 3rd quarter of the Raps game which lined up with the exciting finish in that Cavs Thunder game. So no, it wasn't a perfect Raptors game, but it was perfect if you wanted to watch the losing Raptors AND the Cavs vs Thunder which I did. Anyway, back for part 2 of this series that I am dragging out just to stretch my ideas for as many days as possible. I would be sad to see Chris go. Long time readers of this blog will know I wrote an entire piece about Boucher, the last remaining member of the 2019 championship squad. I'd love to see him retire a Raptor. That being said, Chris is a useful spark plug off the bench who for the second straight season is getting no minutes under Darko Rajakovic. It would only be fair to Chris to find him a new home where he can contribute. Is Chris going to be a starter on a contender? No, definitely not. But Boucher has good value as a 9th-11th man who can come in and change a game with his hustle and energy. His $10.8m expiring salary shouldn't be super hard to match and with how little he's been used, I can't imagine the compensation would need to be immense. That being said, here's who I think Chris could fit well with: 

Atlanta Hawks

I'll be the first to say that I've been a Trae Young hater for his entire career. This season though, I'm liking what I'm seeing. The Hawks have done a great job of building a team of athletic wings around Trae and letting him cook as the sole ball handler. The Hawks have some young players that they have trouble finding minutes for, particularly Kobe Bufkin who has done next to nothing in Atlanta and might benefit from a change of scenery. They have other players at the bottom of their roster that can be tossed in to make salaries work as well. Boucher would be another high energy athletic player in their front court. He could play alongside Okongwu or Capela in certain lineups and would provide a break glass in case of emergency energy presence on a team with actual playoff aspirations. The issue here is the Hawks might be able to find a more quality piece with their assets and they would need to cobble together 3 players just to make the salaries work in a move for what could end up being their 11th man. Still, put Boucher in a situation where he needs to just be an energy player around a playmaker like Trae Young and I think they could have him looking way better than he does in Toronto. 

Denver Nuggets

At this point I am just begging the Nuggets to take on one of these Raptors players just to give them some additional depth. The Nuggets could make the salaries work with Zeke Nnaji plus one of their many young guys who get no playing time. You could argue that Chris Boucher would be the Nuggets 7th best player this season. In games when Aaron Gordon is out especially, the Nuggets severely lack front court depth and Boucher is a guy that can slot in beside Jokic and you could talk yourself into seeing him spot minutes at the backup 5 while Jokic rests. The issue here is Zeke Nnaji has 4 years on his contract and has proven so far that he is not anywhere near an NBA caliber player despite multiple chances given. The Raptors would need to get draft compensation just to take on that contract and even then it may not be something a rebuilding Raptors team is looking to do. I'll say again though, I love the idea of putting Boucher next to high IQ playmakers to limit the decisions he needs to make as much as possible. I can imagine Jokic making him look significantly better than he does in his current role. 

San Antonio Spurs

Chris Boucher is just mini Wemby, change my mind. I kid, but the Spurs have this year and next left on Zach Collins' contract who's making $16m per. Charles Bassey has emerged as a decent backup big for when Wemby sits and they may value the cap flexibility in the offseason while maintaining competitiveness this year, which this trade does perfectly. The fit isn't immediately clear in San Antonio but I think having another set of long skinny limbs on that team would be hilarious and what is the NBA if not an entertainment product? The Raptors would likely need draft compensation to take on the Zach Collins contract but this one is much more palatable than then Nnaji deal as it comes off the books after next season. Collins also figures to be a decent backup to Poeltl should the Raptors decide to hold on. I find this one unlikely, but I do hope the Spurs add more depth at the deadline because Wemby's looked every bit of a superstar so far this year. 

LA Lakers

The Lakers are always a circus and I would feel terrible shipping a beloved player out there, but they do have the contracts to make it work. Either of Gabe Vincent or Jarred Vanderbilt are both matching salaries and not contributing to the Lakers right now due to injury or just poor play. Either one of them would require draft compensation for the Raptors to take on with years beyond this one still on their contracts. Boucher would provide another playable front court piece and fits the mold of playing with a high IQ playmaker to maximize his skills. If history has taught us anything it's that the Lakers will be active at the deadline. I do hope the Raptors can capitalize on their desperation. We can apologize to Boucher for it later. 

And that's that! I am kind of grateful that I have dinner plans tonight that should see me miss most if not all of this Raptors Cavs game tonight. The Cavs have lost 4 games so far this season and have already dismantled the Raptors twice. I do hope they surprise me though! Go Raptors!