The NBA trade deadline is just 16 days away, and still, the Toronto Raptors have been mentioned as one of the most active teams pursuing a trade. It’s unknown if there is a particular player the Raptors are looking to trade for, but what is known is that an upgrade will significantly help a young team looking to contend now and in the near future. 

The salary cap is heavily distributed amongst the starting five. Toronto currently sits $41.975 million over the $154.647 million salary cap for 2025-26; the starting five accounts for $156.462 million just this season. 

Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes (4) | © Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

With these facts in mind, Josh Lewenberg with TSN Sports described the aggressiveness of Toronto at the deadline and their potential inability to complete a significant deal. 

“If the Raptors don’t make a big move, it’s not a lack of effort or interest,” said Lewenberg. It’s because their hands are tied by some of these expensive contracts they handed out over the last few years. The belief is that the front office could be open to moving any combination of [Immanuel Quickley], RJ [Barrett], and Jak[ob] [Poeltl], both because, they would need to include 1 or 2 of those guys to match salary in any big deal, but also because, those are the contracts that are really limiting them from a financial flexibility standpoint. That’s also why teams aren’t exactly lining up to [be] acquiring those guys.” 

While all three of these players’ contracts seem appalling at this point, it’s important to note that they were all given the money for different reasons. Barrett signed his extension back with the New York Knicks in 2022, just before the final year of his rookie deal. As a former No. 3 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, it’s not surprising to see this type of extension due to potential alone.

Quickley signed his extension after becoming a restricted free agent in June of 2024. With the new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) becoming effective just the year prior, it was determined that each NBA franchise must spend at least 90% of the salary cap within the first day of free agency in order to avoid fines or punishments. This could have a significant impact on why Toronto paid Quickley as much as it did; however, he was only 25 at the time of signing, so potential also surely played a part.

Finally with Poeltl, he signed his extension this past offseason, again on the first day of free agency. While this definitely was an influence, the veteran center had started every game he played in since the Raptors traded for him during the 2022-23 season. He consistently provided double-digit scoring to match rebounding and paint protection that fit Toronto’s needs, which they expected him to provide for the next several years. Unfortunately for Poeltl and the Raptors, he has only played in 21 games this season, and he is averaging his lowest points, rebounds, and blocks per game since at least 2021. 

Toronto Raptors forward RJ Barrett (9) and center Jakob Poeltl (19) | © Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

Do these three pieces need to be moved? No, not at all. While injuries have been a problem for the trio this season, when all are healthy, they provide significant impact in their respective areas to a team currently in fourth place in the Eastern Conference.

However, if Toronto is looking to make a splash for a superstar, one or two of them will need to depart so the contracts match. These next two weeks will surely be a process of general manager Bobby Webster experimenting and negotiating to find the perfect deal that relieves the team contractually moving forward.