7th pick = Trade Down

[OakleyDokely]

7th is a good spot. I'm fairly certain we will be able to get a player better than Ace and VJ who imo are being overrated and shouldn't be top 5 locks based on their freshman years.

I think the draft is pretty strong all the way down to about 11-12 so moving down slightly, depending on the offer, might be a decent option.

Guys like Queen, Fears, Jack, Kon, Tre etc could easily end up being top players from this draft and they're all likely to go in the back half of the top 10.

I'm worried Queen and Fears will jump up to 5 and 6. I could easily see that.

Definitely possible. Workouts and measurements will be big.

[Rapsalot]

Depends on who goes before our pick. Now if we move down to 9 on May 12 and this happens I totally with original poster.

Cooper, Dylan, Ace, VJ are off board for sure. Then if Maluach, Queen, Fears, Jakucionis are next of then I think everyone else will not have a chance to start for us in the next 3 years. That is BI’s arc with team for now.
I know Tre J will be good but if you draft him do you trade RJ now or at least Gradey + Ochai to try to get C and PG?
If T Sorber is still at 18 I could see us moving 9th pick + 39th for pick 18, 26, 35 and Nets 2026 second round pick.
Take Sorber, a PG at 26 and BPA at 35.
If we pick Kon you basically need to trade Gradey D to help fill holes in roster.

I don't see us dropping 9 spots in the draft just to add more picks.

We don't get a chance to draft this high much, so take advantage of it. Quality over quantity now.

I hear and understand your thoughts but, this draft is 4-5 deep depending on Tre J. All the others will be depth unless the teams is very bad.
Spurs maybe would start Kon K if they get him? As long as we are adding depth we should add depth that will help us sustain wins when others get hurt next year. No team goes whole year injury free. I would review our 9 pick with Nets and if T Sorber is on the board at 18 I would make trade I think there are enough PGs late first we could get one. The 35, Nets. 2026 and say our 2027 second could be trade to a Cap tight team for a future high protected say top 21 first in 26 or 27. To me Egor D or Jase R don’t grade out as so much of a lock to be 6th man as Labaron Philon that you don’t try to add both positions of need. You get to add a backup C that is not a good 3 pt today but is good both sides of the ball. Most other aspects. Now if ATL takes him you just stay as is.

[OakleyDokely]

Other than Flagg and maybe Harper, I'm not sure anyone is going to help your team positively next year. Maybe a few guys defend right out of the gate, but most of these guys can't even score efficiently at the college level. To do it at the NBA level in their rookie season would require a large step up.

[dhackett1565]

I suspect if we stand at 7 or slide a spot or two, we'll be in a spot in the lotto where they'll like a prospect enough to just take them and run, whether it's someone who slips or someone they are afraid won't get to whatever spot they could trade down to.

Obviously if we end up in 1 or 2 we likely just pick and run. For me the interesting scenario is if we jump to like 4th - is that a spot where you think there's real value in moving down a spot or two and still getting the guy you want from that tier...? Even then I'd bet they just pick their guy.

[Tripod]

Other than Flagg and maybe Harper, I'm not sure anyone is going to help your team positively next year. Maybe a few guys defend right out of the gate, but most of these guys can't even score efficiently at the college level. To do it at the NBA level in their rookie season would require a large step up.

Yeah that's one thing that stood out when you look at all these guards at the top of the draft, few can shoot. Quite alarming.

When we move up to #3 in the draft, will be interesting to see who we take. Wink.

[ConSarnit]

Other than Flagg and maybe Harper, I'm not sure anyone is going to help your team positively next year. Maybe a few guys defend right out of the gate, but most of these guys can't even score efficiently at the college level. To do it at the NBA level in their rookie season would require a large step up.

I’d wager even those guys won’t have a positive impact next year. Flagg will be 19 and Harper is a PG and that usually takes time to figure out. The vast majority of rookies are not positive contributors. We need to assume we won’t be getting much from our rookies next year, at least for the first half of the year.

[mrdressup]

If we are drafting 9th that might seem like a possibility, but who's going to want to jump to 9th that bad from a few positions lower? Our pick is going to be either very desirable (1-4) or mid (7-9). At 8 or 9 you might get a guy that cracks the starting line-up in his career.

[tsherkin]

Other than Flagg and maybe Harper, I'm not sure anyone is going to help your team positively next year. Maybe a few guys defend right out of the gate, but most of these guys can't even score efficiently at the college level. To do it at the NBA level in their rookie season would require a large step up.

I’d wager even those guys won’t have a positive impact next year. Flagg will be 19 and Harper is a PG and that usually takes time to figure out. The vast majority of rookies are not positive contributors. We need to assume we won’t be getting much from our rookies next year, at least for the first half of the year.

Flagg will likely exert some positive effect. Probably not a huge one, but by virtue of his size and position, he'll probably have immediate utility as a rebounder and help defender, even though he'll have adjustments to make for the differences in the NBA. Offense will probably take a bit longer, though.

I'm guessing, of course, but that's sort of where my head is at. You can put a guy who already hustles and has good physical tools into a system (especially a frontcourt guy) and they'll usually have positive value on that side of the ball. Offensively, the story differs considerably, though.

[Jerry Lucas]

7th is a good spot. I'm fairly certain we will be able to get a player as good or better than Ace and VJ who imo are being overrated and shouldn't be top 5 locks based on their freshman years.

I think the draft is pretty strong all the way down to about 11-12 so moving down slightly, depending on the offer, might be a decent option.

Guys like Queen, Fears, Jack, Kon, Tre etc could easily end up being top players from this draft and they're all likely to go in the back half of the top 10.

Other than Flagg and maybe Harper, I'm not sure anyone is going to help your team positively next year. Maybe a few guys defend right out of the gate, but most of these guys can't even score efficiently at the college level. To do it at the NBA level in their rookie season would require a large step up.

I generally find myself agreeing with most of your draft prospect takes, but these 2 posts are leading me to believe you're too low on Edgecombe.

Read on Twitter

Edgecombe ended up on this query. Flagg and Thomas Sorber barely missed the cut (both on STL%). Scottie also ended up on this query in his draft year.

Edgecombe has tangibly demonstrated through his production that he has one of the highest ceilings in this draft, and it's already widely agreed upon that he has one of the highest floors because of his defense.

I'm still of the opinion that Edgecombe is too underrated. Mainstream draft coverage/discourse basically have him and Ace as borderline locks to go 3 and 4 in a tier after Harper, but really he should be in the conversation for #2 with Harper.

[OakleyDokely]

7th is a good spot. I'm fairly certain we will be able to get a player as good or better than Ace and VJ who imo are being overrated and shouldn't be top 5 locks based on their freshman years.

I think the draft is pretty strong all the way down to about 11-12 so moving down slightly, depending on the offer, might be a decent option.

Guys like Queen, Fears, Jack, Kon, Tre etc could easily end up being top players from this draft and they're all likely to go in the back half of the top 10.

Other than Flagg and maybe Harper, I'm not sure anyone is going to help your team positively next year. Maybe a few guys defend right out of the gate, but most of these guys can't even score efficiently at the college level. To do it at the NBA level in their rookie season would require a large step up.

I generally find myself agreeing with most of your draft prospect takes, but these 2 posts are leading me to believe you're too low on Edgecombe.

Read on Twitter

Edgecombe ended up on this query. Flagg and Thomas Sorber barely missed the cut (both on STL%). Scottie also ended up on this query in his draft year.

Edgecombe has tangibly demonstrated through his production that he has one of the highest ceilings in this draft, and it's already widely agreed upon that he has one of the highest floors because of his defense.

I'm still of the opinion that Edgecombe is too underrated. Mainstream draft coverage/discourse basically have him and Ace as borderline locks to go 3 and 4 in a tier after Harper, but really he should be in the conversation for #2 with Harper.

It's not necessary that I'm low on him, I just think there isn't much separation between him and some other guards.

I don't question the defensive potential, but defensive ability out of guards is typically less impactful / valuable than big wings and Cs.

I question his offensive upside at the NBA level. He's not a great shooter or finisher around the rim, and he doesn't get to the line a lot either. I just don't see top 2-3 offensive option upside.

I think he can be valuable as a potential 3+D starter but he lacks the offensive refinement to be a plus offensive player with high usage.

[Pointgod]

Trade trade all this board wants to do is trade everyone honestly lets just trade everyone for picks ala okc style and bottom out whats the point of having any of these players/assets if they are not going to be given any chance to develop/improve or reach their full potential lets just firesale then

Sign me up!

[bballsparkin]

So you're expecting to win the lottery? They rarely happen and it's unlikely to happen. MOving on.

There are dozens of examples. Tractor Tailor (6th) for Dirk (9th), Deron Williams (3rd) for Martell Webster (6th) + 27th.

In 2004 the Suns traded out of the draft completely when picking 7th. The 7th pick for a 2005 unprotected pick from Chicago (picking 3rd). So that’s another option, but it turned into the 21st pick the following year.

Would you trade the 7th for Charlotte’s unprotected 2026 pick?

Unlikely would have been a better word than rarely. It seems like every year since Bargs Raps fans talk of trading down. In theory I don't mind the idea if they think they can get their guy later. But you need a team badly wanting to move up as well. And then hoping the guy you target is still there later. The trades you posted didn't work out well for one half the teams in the trades. For that reason I would not trade 7th for Charlotte's unprotected 2026. Too risky for me. As tempting as it might be to gamble on Charlotte failing.

[bballsparkin]

I'm worried Queen and Fears will jump up to 5 and 6. I could easily see that.

One of Fears, Queens or Tre should be there at 7. And if not that means a guy like Ace might have dropped. Plus lots of other options to chose from. It would be intense on draft day.

[dohboy_24]

If we land the #7, #8, or #9 pick and want to trade down in the draft, the following teams would be the most likely candidates to deal with:

Miami Heat - #12, #21
Atlanta Hawks - #14, #24
Brooklyn Nets - #18, #26, #27, #36
Orlando Magic - #16, #20, #45, #57
Washington Wizards - #22, #40, #47, #52
Utah Jazz - #19, #44, #50

Among those options I'd prefer the Heat, Hawks, Nets, and Magic (in that order) and would even be willing to package the #39 pick if the Nets and Magic were willing to swap all of their picks for ours, but I'm not convinced these teams would want to be our trade partner since there might not be a player they would want to trade for, all of these teams play in the same conference (Eastern) as we do, and one of them is in the same division (Brooklyn).

[Duffman100]

If we land the #7, #8, or #9 pick and want to trade down in the draft, the following teams would be the most likely candidates to deal with:

Miami Heat - #12, #21
Atlanta Hawks - #14, #24
Brooklyn Nets - #18, #26, #27, #36
Orlando Magic - #16, #20, #45, #57
Washington Wizards - #22, #40, #47, #52
Utah Jazz - #19, #44, #50

Among those options I'd prefer the Heat, Hawks, Nets, and Magic (in that order) and would even be willing to package the #39 pick if the Nets and Magic were willing to swap all of their picks for ours, but I'm not convinced these teams would want to be our trade partner since there might not be a player they would want to trade for, all of these teams play in the same conference (Eastern) as we do, and one of them is in the same division (Brooklyn).

Are we taking our roster size into account here? Curious if we're going to run into a problem in space.

[StopitLeo]

Depends on how far down. Historically, the likelihood of finding an All-Star talent drops off somewhere around picks 5-6. After that you're pretty much hoping that the guy you draft outperforms expectations so there's probably little difference between #7 and #17.

I'm pretty optimistic about how the Ingram-Barnes pairing will work out so I think we need guys who can contribute now more than multiple prospects from late in the draft. I'd probably keep the 7th pick unless we are getting a starting quality player back in a trade.

[DreamTeam09]

If we land the #7, #8, or #9 pick and want to trade down in the draft, the following teams would be the most likely candidates to deal with:

Miami Heat - #12, #21
Atlanta Hawks - #14, #24
Brooklyn Nets - #18, #26, #27, #36
Orlando Magic - #16, #20, #45, #57
Washington Wizards - #22, #40, #47, #52
Utah Jazz - #19, #44, #50

Among those options I'd prefer the Heat, Hawks, Nets, and Magic (in that order) and would even be willing to package the #39 pick if the Nets and Magic were willing to swap all of their picks for ours, but I'm not convinced these teams would want to be our trade partner since there might not be a player they would want to trade for, all of these teams play in the same conference (Eastern) as we do, and one of them is in the same division (Brooklyn).

Are we taking our roster size into account here? Curious if we're going to run into a problem in space.

No ppl are not, we have like one open roster spot after our 1st n 2nd round picks are accounted for

[dohboy_24]

The Raptors have 13 players under contract for the 2025/26 season:

Scottie Barnes, Brandon Ingram, Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Jakob Poeltl, Ochai Agbaji, Gradey Dick, Ja'Kobe Walter, Jonathan Mogbo, Jamison Battle, Jamal Shead, Ulrich Chomche (2-way), Jared Rhoden (2-way)

SOURCE: https://www.spotrac.com/nba/toronto-raptors/cap/_/year/2025/sort/cap_total

With a total of 18 spots available on the roster (15-man roster + 3 two-way contracts), that leaves room for five (5) more players to be added to the team before the start of next season as long as one of them is signed to a two-way contract and the rest are given standard deals.

If Toronto were to swap their 2 picks for 4 picks from either Orlando or Brooklyn, the four (4) rookies would take up the remaining spots available for standard contracts and we'd still have one spot left for another two-way contract player.

[Basketball_Jones]

I think Queen/Johnson/Newell/Kon are your most NBA ready guys but probably off the bench as rookies. But yeah, outside of Cooper and Harper not many day one starters. Ace/Fears/VJ are highest upside but will take long to develop imo, which is why I see all of them in the top 5 come draft day. We’ll have first dibs on the more high floor players.

[Indeed]

If we land the #7, #8, or #9 pick and want to trade down in the draft, the following teams would be the most likely candidates to deal with:

Miami Heat - #12, #21
Atlanta Hawks - #14, #24
Brooklyn Nets - #18, #26, #27, #36
Orlando Magic - #16, #20, #45, #57
Washington Wizards - #22, #40, #47, #52
Utah Jazz - #19, #44, #50

Among those options I'd prefer the Heat, Hawks, Nets, and Magic (in that order) and would even be willing to package the #39 pick if the Nets and Magic were willing to swap all of their picks for ours, but I'm not convinced these teams would want to be our trade partner since there might not be a player they would want to trade for, all of these teams play in the same conference (Eastern) as we do, and one of them is in the same division (Brooklyn).

Are we taking our roster size into account here? Curious if we're going to run into a problem in space.

No ppl are not, we have like one open roster spot after our 1st n 2nd round picks are accounted for

But why are teams want to trade up? Because we are the Lakers?