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    • Raptors’ Cooper Flagg odds skyrocket with latest update on Scottie Barnes injury
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    Raptors’ Cooper Flagg odds skyrocket with latest update on Scottie Barnes injury

    Sakege Posted on

    He Toronto Raptors They are 1-3 with a solitary victory over a team plagued by injuries. Philadelphia 76ersso there hasn’t been much to write home about north of the border. Toronto is both a very expensive roster and a clearly rebuilding team, which is an uncomfortable and perhaps unsustainable combination. But that is the cross that Masai Ujiri and the board must bear to move forward.

    It’s not difficult to figure out the best path forward for Toronto. With so much money invested in Scottie Barnes, Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett, the Raps won’t be players in free agency for a while. What Toronto can do is sink. He NBA Draft is a free cheat code for teams in financial purgatory. It’s an opportunity to add affordable talent under the team’s control for the long term, no matter how bad their cap balance is.

    For the Raptors, this season appears to be trending in that direction. That one win over a skeletal Sixers team aside, it’s been an extremely difficult sled for Toronto. There’s a lot to like about the individual pieces at play, but the Raptors don’t have the offensive firepower to take on legitimate contenders.

    Toronto’s not-so-secret rebuild received an unfortunate boost Wednesday when it was announced that Scottie Barnes will miss at least three weeks with an orbital fracture he suffered in Monday’s loss to the Denver Nuggets.

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    With Barnes out of commission for a time, Toronto’s record is expected to continue on its downward trajectory. The Raptors will prioritize developing young pieces such as Gradey Dick and Jonathan Mogbo, who are in line to see more minutes without Barnes. Toronto can mix and match various personnel groups, perhaps experimenting with smaller, faster lineups to maximize Quickley and Barrett, who will lead the scoring charge in Barnes’ absence. But no matter how creative head coach Darko Rajakovic is, the Raptors will struggle. The talent deficiency is too great.

    That means it’s time for Toronto fans to put on their scouting helmets and pay special attention to the Duke blue devilswhose season begins on Monday, November 4. That will be the official college basketball debut for 17-year-old Cooper Flagg, widely considered the Prospect number 1 in the loaded 2025 draft.

    Flagg has been rising in basketball circles for a while, offering a tantalizing combination of size, athleticism and basketball IQ, not to mention his uncommon youth. Flagg, who spent his summer practicing against players like Anthony Davis and Bam Adebayo with the U.S. national select team, will turn 18.5 on draft night. He won’t turn 19 until the third month of the next NBA season. It is rare to find such advanced players who are so young and with so much room for growth.

    Landing Flagg with the first pick would instantly change the trajectory of this Raptors team, clearing up any lingering doubts about the direction of the franchise. Flagg and Barnes is a crazy defensive combination to think about, not to mention the offensive potential of two 6-foot-9 forwards who can handle, pass and create for themselves.

    With an elite defensive repertoire and enough burgeoning offensive skills to suggest future stardom, Flagg possesses the valuable combination of a high floor and a high ceiling. It’s hard to imagine him failing the next level, and the Raptors would be lucky to bring him North.

    So don’t despair, Toronto fans. This season is going to be difficult, but it could all be in service of something really great in the future.

    Sakege
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