5 potential trade destinations for Jrue Holiday

3. Toronto Raptors

The Toronto Raptors are a sneaky strong candidate for a trade this season, especially if they look to offload Marc Gasol‘s expiring $25.6 million contract and a future draft picks to strengthen their roster for a title defense.

Dumping Gasol after he just helped the team win its first ever championship would feel cold-blooded, but Masai Ujiri and Bobby Webster have a job to do. Big Spain is hardly a vital piece these days, averaging 6.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 29.0 minutes per game, and if the Raptors made a move for Holiday, they could shift Serge Ibaka to the 5 full-time and hardly miss a beat.

Freeing up nearly $26 million in cap space over the summer would provide the Pelicans with breathing room as they enter negotiations with Ingram, but the question after that is whether Toronto would meet NOLA’s likely asking price of two future first-round picks.

If the Raptors were willing to offer two unprotected picks in 2020 and 2022, Griffin would have to think long and hard about that combination of cap relief and draft compensation. He wouldn’t get a youngster to groom or a veteran to help this inexperienced group grow, but few other teams would potentially throw in two first-rounders in preparation of another Finals run.

However, there’s been no indication the Raptors are looking to make landscape-altering moves just yet, even if it wouldn’t be surprising. They also may not be willing to pony up two first-rounders for another guard with Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet already in the backcourt.