Much of the intrigue surrounding the Toronto Raptors as we approach Thursday’s trade deadline involves the future of Kyle Lowry, as the best player in franchise history is rumored to have piqued the interest of the Miami Heat and the Philadelphia 76ers. He isn’t the only Raptors player who has drawn plenty of interest, as a recent report by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN indicates there is a huge market trying to acquire the services of one of his teammates.
According to Woj, Norman Powell isn’t just drawing interest, nearly half the league is doing its due diligence on the high-scoring wing, with “a dozen or so” teams trying to bring him on board.
“The Raptors have a host of ways to go with a Powell trade — a number of combinations of young players, draft picks and expiring contracts — that’ll give Toronto optionality,” Wojnarowski wrote.
Powell is a sensible trade target in a few ways. The big one is his contract, as the soon-to-be 28-year-old has a player option for $11.6 million in 2021-22 that Woj reports he’s expected to decline. For teams that could use a scoring punch ahead of this year’s playoff push, Powell can absolutely bring that, as he’s averaging a career-high 19.5 points per game while connecting on 49.5 percent of his shots from the field and 43.4 percent of his threes.