Raptors fans can daydream about Stephen Curry all they want, but the idea of him landing in Toronto needs a hard reset.
The offseason has already delivered enough chaos to keep the NBA buzzing, from Jaylen Brown ending up with an in-division rival to the Kawhi Leonard trade getting held up, Giannis Antetokounmpo being dealt, and the so-called Decision 2.0. Then LeBron James joined Jaylen Brown in Philadelphia, and that set off even more chatter about whether Curry might eventually ask out of Golden State.
That kind of speculation has a way of pulling fans into the fantasy. For Raptors supporters, the appeal is obvious: Toronto has been searching for a true elite point guard since Kyle Lowry. Immanuel Quickley has had his moments, but his health issues and uneven play have left plenty of fans wanting a more reliable answer at the position.
Still, Curry is not that answer, because he is not going anywhere.
The biggest obstacle is simple: Toronto does not have the kind of trade package that would make sense for a player like Curry. The Raptors already gave up a major haul for Kawhi Leonard, and Bobby Webster has never been the type to empty the clip completely.
Even with Curry on a one-year contract and at an age where a decline is coming at some point, he is still Steph Curry. At 38, he averaged 26.6 points per game and shot 39.3 percent from three on 11.3 attempts per game.
He remains a top-five point guard and one of the best shooters the league has ever seen. He is also the Warriors’ greatest player in franchise history and one of the sport’s biggest icons, which means any team trying to pry him loose would have to come with an outrageous return.
Toronto simply cannot match what other teams could put on the table if Curry were ever made available. The Raptors could dangle Ja’Kobe Walter, Collin Murray-Boyles, IQ, Jamal Shead, RJ Barrett and picks, but that still leaves the bigger question: what would the roster even look like after that? A core of Curry, Kawhi, Scottie Barnes and minimum-contract players is not the kind of setup that solves everything.
There is a small chance Curry eventually finishes his career somewhere other than Golden State, but that is far from the likeliest outcome. The one thing that feels certain is that he will not be wearing a Raptors jersey, even if the connection sounds fun on paper. His wife Ayesha is a Toronto native, and Curry spent parts of his childhood in the city, so it would not be shocking if he had some interest in Toronto.
Even so, the Raptors have more pressing issues to sort out, starting with making sure the Kawhi Leonard deal actually gets done. Whether Curry ever becomes available or not, Toronto is not in position to chase another superstar this offseason.
In Other News...
Raptors Still Have One Hurdle Before They Become A Real Threat
The Raptors have spent the offseason trying to shore up the edges of the roster, adding Kyle Anderson and Allen Graves to address some of the problems that showed up a year ago. More important, Scottie Barnes has continued to establish himself as the central piece, while younger players like Collin Murray-Boyles and Ja'Kobe Walter have flashed enough progress to make the long view feel more realistic than it did not long ago.
What Toronto still needs, though, is the kind of internal jump that turns a promising group into a real threat, and that puts even more pressure on Barnes to keep expanding his game as a scorer. If he can push his shooting into a more dangerous range, the Raptors start to look less like a team building toward something and more like one that can actually follow the slow-burn path other contenders have taken. [Read more 🡒]
Raptors Still Have One Frontcourt Problem Fans Know Too Well
The Raptors are still staring at a familiar frontcourt question as the roster takes shape for next season. Jakob Poeltl is in line to anchor the middle, and while Toronto has reasons to value his size and steadiness, the reaction around him has never fully quieted down. If the team leans on Collin Murray-Boyles behind him, it could leave Darko Rajakovic with a thinner look at the five than fans would prefer, especially in a conference where physicality in the paint tends to matter.
Toronto also knows this is not a problem that disappears just because the calendar flips. A smaller frontline can put extra pressure on the glass, and the Raptors have already lived through stretches where that issue showed up at the worst possible time. The front office still has future picks and movable contracts to work with if it wants to chase a bigger answer later, but for now the shape of the center rotation remains one of the clearest pressure points on the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Raptors Still Have One Frontcourt Problem This Offseason Didn't Solve
The Raptors spent the offseason adding pieces, but they still have not brought in anyone taller than 6-9, and that leaves a familiar question hanging over the roster. Torontos frontcourt got a boost with Allen Graves, the 19th overall pick, but the rookie is more of a versatile forward than a true answer to the kind of size that can tilt games in the paint.
Graves is expected to back up Jakob Poeltl and may even slide into some small-ball five minutes, which helps with flexibility but does not fully change the teams size profile. Toronto also passed on several taller center prospects in the draft, and after the playoff rebounding issues that already exposed the group, the Raptors still look like a team that could have trouble matching up with dominant big men. [Read more 🡒]