Raptors will have to spend heavily to retain their core players

After seeing their season end with Wednesday’s play-in loss to Chicago, the Raptors are about to enter a very expensive era if they hope to keep the team’s current core together, writes Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype. New contracts will have to be negotiated for five veteran players during the next two years, along with a rookie scale extension for Scottie Barnes.

The first priority is this summer when Fred VanVleet, Jakob Poeltl and Gary Trent Jr. are all likely to be free agents. VanVleet, who’s expected to decline a $22.8M player option, is eligible for an extension through June 30, but he’s in position to land a bigger contract through free agency. Gozlan expects his next deal to be on par with Jrue Holiday, Kyle Lowry and Jalen Brunson.

Poeltl, who was acquired at the trade deadline, is also eligible for an extension, but like VanVleet it will be more profitable for him to become a free agent. Gozlan foresees a new contract that will put him in the neighborhood of Jarrett Allen, Nikola Vucevic and Clint Capela.

Trent could also choose free agency if he turns down an $18.6M player option. Trent, who no longer starts but remains one of Toronto’s only dependable shooters off the bench, is likely to stay in his same salary range but on a long-term deal, according to Gozlan.

There’s more from Toronto:

• There has been a lot of speculation about coach Nick Nurse’s future, but there’s still “a pathway forward” for him to remain with the Raptors, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said on “NBA Countdown” before Wednesday’s game (video link). Nurse has been communicating with team president Masai Ujiri, according to Wojnarowski, who expects those conversations to continue. If Nurse and the team part ways, Woj mentions the Rockets as a potential next destination, saying he’s “very high on their list.”
• Wednesday’s loss capped a frustrating season that began with an injury in training camp to free agent addition Otto Porter Jr., notes Michael Grange of SportsNet. Porter, who signed a two-year, $12.3M deal, played just eight games before being lost for the season with a dislocated toe, leaving the Raptors with depth problems that were never solved.
• The addition of Poeltl helped to turn Toronto’s season around, Grange states in another SportsNet article. He provided a presence in the middle that the team had been lacking and helped the Raptors post a 15-10 record once he entered the starting lineup.