Toronto Raptors players prepared for anything at NBA trade deadline
When you look back at the first time Gradey Dick stepped on the court for the Toronto Raptors, the team’s roster is almost unrecognizable compared to the current group.
Just three players — himself, Jakob Poeltl, and Scottie Barnes — suited up for his NBA debut against the Minnesota Timberwolves back in October 2023 and are still on Toronto’s roster.
But it’s advice from a few of the elder statesmen on the team — 32-year-old Chris Boucher and 38-year-old Garrett Temple — that were sitting on the bench for Dick’s NBA debut that has helped the 21-year-old navigate his second NBA trade deadline, which is coming up this Thursday.
“You gotta be prepared for anything,” Dick said following Toronto’s 115-108 win on Sunday afternoon over the Los Angeles Clippers of the advice Temple offered him around keeping a cool head around the NBA trade deadline.
Temple himself has played for 12 NBA franchises in his 14 seasons, having been traded three times in his NBA career. If Temple, who’s suited up for just 66 total minutes this season, finds himself on the move, it’d be more of a team looking to add his off-court leadership or simply adding his contract into the deal to make the NBA’s salary-matching rules work.
On the flip side, Boucher sat Friday’s contest but suited up for 16 minutes on Sunday. Despite being the Raptors’ longest-serving active player, having now played 399 of his 400 NBA games with the team, he’s another player who’s found himself in constant trade rumours.
In his second year with the team after being a first-round draft pick in 2023, Dick is probably safe from having to find a new home after this week.
But it’s hard for any NBA player, star or not, to ever feel truly settled in a league that thrives off constant transactions.
In Dick’s first season, Toronto made two major moves, shipping out Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Precious Achiuwa, and Malachi Flynn, and bringing back Bruce Brown, RJ Barrett, and Immanuel Quickley into the fold.
“It definitely kind of prepared me for some of these [moves],” Dick added of what the first major trades of his NBA life looked like.
And with the league-altering Luka Doncic/Anthony Davis swap on Saturday night seeing a pair of star players on the move that may have been seen as untouchable, Dick knew exactly what the media wanted to get his thoughts on ahead of the deadline this week.
“This one was a big trade,” Dick said with a smile. “It’s surprising a lot of people, but at the same time, kind of shows the NBA is a business at the end of the day.”
After winning just one game from December 5 to January 11, the Raptors are now 8-2 in their last 10 games. And while competing this season doesn’t seem much in the cards for Toronto, Dick seems to have faith in the organization’s long-term vision.
“I think it’s just knowing in our heads we don’t need to change really anything,” Dick said, “We just need to go out there and play hard. Obviously, there’s things that we need to do different with different teams that we play, but hard work and just effort cancel a lot of those struggles out.”
Whether Toronto adjusts its trade deadline strategy based on its recent hot stretch remains to be seen. But if there’s any consolation for the Raptors players who might be on the move this week, there are hardly any true surprises expected to come their way.
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