The Toronto Raptors are a team changing gears under new direction from reigning Executive of the Year Masai Ujiri, who joined the franchise in May. Their acquisition of Rudy Gay last season was a surprise and the first big step the organization has made to change its culture, but it again missed the playoffs. Making matters worse, Toronto does not own its 2013 first-round draft pick, after trading it to Houston in a deal that landed it Kyle Lowry, and it does not own its second-round draft pick.
NBA Draft 2013: Toronto Raptors start draft without a pick
The Raptors’ front office is in transition and change is expected, but without any draft picks in 2013, it’s unlikely to come in the form of a prospect.
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Toronto has missed the playoffs for the last five seasons but has yet to find a franchise-changing player in the draft lottery. Terrence Ross, Jonas Valanciunas, Ed Davis and DeMar DeRozan are their last four picks. All but Davis were in the top 10, yet things have not taken an upswing for the Raptors.
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Visit Raptors HQ for more on the Raptors. The Raptors organization will take on a new identity under the guidance of Ujiri, but it's unlikely to begin with a splash in the 2013 NBA Draft. Ujiri works quietly, however, and masterminded the trade that sent Andre Iguodala to the Denver Nuggets, Dwight Howard to the Los Angeles Lakers and Arron Afflalo to the Orlando Magic seemingly out of nowhere.
Draft picks
As noted above, Toronto does not own any draft picks in the 2013 NBA Draft. Looking ahead, however, Toronto owns its first-round draft picks from 2014-2018.
Depth chart
Point guard -- Kyle Lowry (team option), John Lucas, Sebastian Telfair (free agent)
Shooting guard -- DeMar DeRozan, Terrence Ross, Alan Anderson (free agent)
Small forward -- Rudy Gay, Landry Fields, Linas Kleiza, Dominic McGuire (free agent), Mickael Pietrus (free agent)
Power forward -- Andrea Bargnani, Amir Johnson, Quincy Acy
Center -- Jonas Valanciunas, Aaron Gray
Biggest need(s)
The draft doesn’t offer any immediate help for the Raptors. There have been no rumors linked to Toronto trying to move into the draft, but if it was looking to add a young prospect to the team, finding a reserve point guard to develop behind Kyle Lowry could be an option. It could also look to add another big man into its frontcourt rotation behind Valanciunas, Bargnani, and Johnson.
Working with a big-man prospect could prove useful for Toronto considering Bargnani played in only 35 games while dealing with health issues, and shot 39 percent from the field and 30 percent from beyond the arc while averaging only 3.7 rebounds per game.
Potential targets
If the Raptors move into the draft, it’d likely be in the late first round or second round. That would put them in range of point guards like Nate Wolters or Isaiah Canaan, or frontcourt players like Jeff Withey (scouting report) or Mike Muscala (scouting report), but as of now there is no indication the Raptors will move into the draft. They have not scheduled any draft workouts, though they have attended group workout sessions and combines.
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