Toronto Raptors Faced With Difficult RJ Barrett Decision

The Toronto Raptors will have a tough decision to make on RJ Barrett's future with the organization as his current contract will expire upon the conclusion of the 2026-27 NBA season. 

Moreover, the 26-year-old forward will be an unrestricted free agent, leaving him with total control over whether he stays with the Raptors or takes his talents elsewhere in the league. 

This past season, Barrett averaged 19.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game in 57 games of action while shooting 49.1% from the field. These figures would make him one of the best offensive contributors on the team alongside forward Brandon Ingram who led Toronto with 21.5 points per game.

Nonetheless, the Raptors continue to have a major weakness that they have not fully addressed, which is their size. 

While the Raptors have 7-foot center Jakob Poeltl, he will turn 31 five days before the start of the season and could show signs of slowing down as the years go by. Poeltl would average 10.7 points, seven rebounds and two assists in 44 games started this year.

NBA-caliber backup centers are hard to come by though and for a Raptors team with playoff aspirations, they would have to give in order to receive.

As a result, Raptors general manager Bobby Webster might have to part ways with Barrett if he wants to improve the squad's chances of returning to 2019-esque levels of dominance.

In February, the Raptors were in talks with the Sacramento Kings on a trade that would have sent 6'10'' forward Domantas Sabonis to Toronto in exchange for Barrett per ESPN's Anthony Slater.

However, neither side came to an agreement in time before the Feb. 5 deadline and the Raptors eventually came up short to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the NBA playoffs.

Meanwhile, the Kings finished the season with a 14th-place ranking in the Western Conference and 22-60 overall record.

Losing Barrett would certainly sting with him being a Toronto native, but if that's what it will take for the Raptors to finally fill in a glaring hole on their roster, Webster would be wise to keep him on the table in negotiations with other teams.

Also, Toronto's offense would still be in good hands with the trio of Ingram, Scottie Barnes and Collin Murray-Boyles. Finally, first-round draft pick Allen Graves has shown a lot of potential after remarkable performances during Summer League play.