The Raptors traded for Brandon Ingram fully knowing how much it would take to re-sign him and for how many years a new contract would last, through back-channel conversations and their own knowledge of the NBA鈥檚 financial realities.
The team鈥檚 front office is not populated by neophytes looking at their first long-term spreadsheets. Their knowledge of the league鈥檚 salary cap and luxury tax is vast, and they do their homework every day of the season.
So, to spend much time to-ing and fro-ing about the long-term cap and tax and apron impact of Tuesday鈥檚 three-year, $120 million (U.S.) contract for Ingram is a waste of time.
An ankle injury has sidelined Ingram the last two months, so the Raptors will have to settle for getting to know him off the court for now.
An ankle injury has sidelined Ingram the last two months, so the Raptors will have to settle for getting to know him off the court for now.
The tax bill comes due at the end of the 2025-26 season, about 15 months from now, and as one NBA source said about an hour after news of Ingram鈥檚 deal broke: There鈥檚 鈥渓ots of time before that happens.鈥
Fixate on it as you wish, and at your peril. General manager Bobby Webster said it himself last week: 鈥淚 think the one thing that鈥檚 changed maybe since 鈥17, 鈥18, 鈥19 is the teams going into the tax, they can鈥檛 all feel like they鈥檙e contenders, right? And so, I think there鈥檚 a bit of a change here, which is: Are you going into the tax because you think you can win a title, or are you going into the tax because you think you can make the playoffs or the second round?
鈥淚 think that鈥檚 sort of the equilibrium and that鈥檚 the balance we need to find, but those are probably decisions for future seasons.鈥
What the deal is, at its heart, is a bet on the future and another piece in the fold for a few years. It’s a message:聽 We’ll keep adding when we can here and there and let鈥檚 see how this works.
The聽Raptors聽put a premium on finding the right聽fit聽when they are considering roster moves. Here’s why Ingram should “fit like a shoe.”
The聽Raptors聽put a premium on finding the right聽fit聽when they are considering roster moves. Here’s why Ingram should “fit like a shoe.”
The implications of the Ingram contract are simple, and have been expected since he was acquired a week ago from the New Orleans Pelicans 鈥 for Bruce Brown, Kelly Olynyk and draft picks. They see him fitting in with Immanuel Quickley, Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett and Jakob Poeltl. It will be up to coach Darko Rajakovic to make it work on the court, and it鈥檚 not impossible.
There is some duplication聽鈥 Barnes, Barrett and Ingram have a lot of similarities 鈥斅燽ut a creative coach should be able to work through it, and Rajakovic and his staff have a bit of this season and all summer to figure it out.
If they can鈥檛, there are remedial methods at their disposal.
Barrett鈥檚 contract is movable,聽but there鈥檚 no reason to think it will be.
Poeltl鈥檚 contract could expire next year (he鈥檚 got a player option) and might be in play.
In this week’s mailbag, Doug Smith takes questions on how much luck NBA teams need to win, sports betting, Raptors depth and more.
In this week’s mailbag, Doug Smith takes questions on how much luck NBA teams need to win, sports betting, Raptors depth and more.
And if the Ingram deal makes it too hard to re-sign free agent Chris Boucher in the summer, well, that鈥檇 be too bad, because Boucher鈥檚 beloved. But given they looked hard to deal him last week, it鈥檚 fair to assume they feel they can live with his absence.
Everything done over the past week聽鈥 dismissing veterans Brown, Olynyk and Davion Mitchell while freeing up minutes for young players and obtaining a still-in-his-prime Ingram聽 鈥 was with an eye for the聽future.
Obtaining Ingram accelerated it. Giving him a new deal was inevitable. And not one bit of it can be seen as wrong.
The Raptors are still going to have a chance at some lottery luck. Ingram or no Ingram, the way the league鈥檚 shaping up the Raptors will be in the bottom third and have reasonable odds to move up.
But what they have now is another bona fide NBA talent locked up for the foreseeable future.
The four freshmen 鈥斅燡amal Shead, Ja鈥橩obe Walter, Jonathan Mogbo and Jamison Battle聽鈥斅爓ill play enhanced roles over the final two months of the season.
The four freshmen 鈥斅燡amal Shead, Ja鈥橩obe Walter, Jonathan Mogbo and Jamison Battle聽鈥斅爓ill play enhanced roles over the final two months of the season.
If the Raptors start next season with Quickley, Barrett, Barnes, Ingram and Poeltl starting and a bench group of Jamal Shead, Ochai Agbaji, Gradey Dick, Ja鈥橩obe Walter and a big or two, how good can they be? Maybe Jonathan Mogbo finds a position where he fits. Maybe whichever high draft pick they make can play?
When the Raptors started this season, there were four goals:聽 develop the rookies and see how they play, look for cohesion in the young group, add talent at the trade deadline if they can, and manage the finances.
On the first goal, there鈥檚 lots to like about Shead, Walter鈥檚 got some promise, Mogbo鈥檚 intriguing and Ulrich Chomche鈥檚 maybe a future bit.
The cohesion still has to come, because injuries have delayed it. And the box for adding talent has been checked.
The managing of finances is left to wiser minds, but should be the least of anyone鈥檚 concerns.
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