The Toronto Raptors have been kicked around as a potential landing spot for Kevin Durant. The logic, as laid out by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, is that the Raptors can do a 1-on-1 trade due to the players they have on their roster and the fact that they have their full arsenal of draft picks.
There is one issue, according to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report. A potential trade between the two teams would, in theory, revolve around Scottie Barnes, the No. 4 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft and the reigning Rookie of the Year. Barnes was a revelation in Toronto last season, and per Fischer, the team does not want to move him this offseason.
“Of important note regarding Toronto: Multiple sources with knowledge of the situation say the Raptors are unwilling to part with reigning Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes,” Fischer wrote.
It is conceivable that the Raptors can put together a deal that interests the Nets without Barnes, but a hypothetical trade package featuring Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, and Gary Trent Jr. with a whole heck of a lot of picks would be quite the difficult pill for them to swallow. During his first year in the Association, Barnes started all 74 games in which he appeared and averaged 15.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.1 steals, and 0.7 blocks in 35.4 minutes per game.
