Why Raptors' cap situation means Bruce Brown will be traded
The Toronto Raptors are shopping Bruce Brown at the trade deadline. Keeping him would tarnish their offseason.
Brown, who came over from the Indiana Pacers in the Pascal Siakam trade on Jan. 17, has a $22 million salary this season, and a $23M team option in 2024-25. That's a high price for a team like Toronto that's been cutting salaries this season.
The Raptors got rid of two high-priced impending free agents when they sent Siakam to Indiana and OG Anunoby to the New York Knicks. With several contracts coming off the books at the end of the year, including Gary Trent Jr. and his $18.6M deal, Toronto is poised to have salary cap space next summer.
That's one reason they're shopping Chris Boucher, due to make $10.8M next season.
The Raptors have a unique cap situation this summer, in that All-Star Scottie Barnes is eligible for a contract extension in July, and 24-year-old Immanuel Quickley is a restricted free agent. But the Barnes extension won't kick in until 2025-26, and Quickley's cap hold of $12.5M will almost certainly be less than his new salary next season.
Making Quickley's re-signing their last move would allow Toronto to maximize their salary cap space, as long as they turn down Brown's option.
That's why team president Masai Ujiri may take the best collection of draft picks and expiring contracts he can get for Brown by Thursday. The Raptors aren't competing this year. They've gone 2-8 since trading Siakam and are now closer in the standings to the Detroit Pistons than the Indiana Pacers.
That's also why Toronto might try to move Dennis Schroder — perhaps in a trade to Minnesota — to ditch his $13M salary next season. The chance to add a ton of cap space might be tempting enough for Toronto to turn trade rumors into a fire sale.
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