The Toronto Raptors stole the show during Thursday’s NBA trade deadline, completing one of the day’s biggest deals in acquiring Marc Gasol from the Memphis Grizzlies.
Of course, its shockwaves didn’t reshape the league’s landscape the way an Anthony Davis trade would have. And as is the case with any big trade, reaction has been mixed — from both fans and media.
Here is a roundup of what some media outlets south of the border are saying about the Toronto Raptors’ blockbuster acquisition of Gasol:
NBA Trade Deadline: The East Arms Race Is Now in Full Effect – Sports Illustrated
For as well as Serge Ibaka has shot the ball this season, his last playoff run proved to be a harrowing experience. Gasol, at 34, comes with his own limitations. They’re simply different enough from the concerns Toronto would have with its other bigs to make the entire team better for it. Two of the three can be effective most nights, which is all most playoff teams really need.
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As much as it hurts to give up Delon Wright and C.J. Miles in the deal, they are, pragmatically speaking, the fourth-best guard on the team and a reserve specialist. Life for a contender rolls on without them, particularly when a player like Gasol can be had.
NBA trade grades: In finally dealing Markelle Fultz, 76ers admit defeat – Washington Post
It’s too bad the Raptors don’t have a time machine to take their big three of Gasol, Leonard and Lowry back to, say, 2016. That team would have been a clear favorite to win the East and would give the Warriors some serious anxiety. This version is still intriguing, but will rely on Gasol to hit the ground running and deliver a late-career resurgence.
Grading Every NBA Team’s 2019 Trade Deadline Performance — Bleacher Report
Standing pat wasn’t an option for the Raptors, who have roughly four months left to convince Kawhi Leonard his future should be north of the border. Adding Gasol makes for quite the sales pitch, even if he’s not quite an All-Star talent anymore.
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The Raptors didn’t get a tier-one star, but they didn’t even pay a tier-two price. Going from Valanciunas to Gasol is a significant upgrade. Wright is older than you think. Miles and Richardson weren’t regulars, and the two seconds are low-percentage unknowns.
There weren’t many ways to improve Toronto’s roster without losing a key asset, but Masai Ujiri found one.
Raptors make splash in East arms race, as Grizzlies try to figure out next era – CBS Sports
You don’t trade for a 34-year-old center unless you believe it’s a big upgrade and you’re trying to win immediately. In this case, Toronto made perfect sense as a Gasol destination. With Kawhi Leonard’s free agency hanging over the franchise, the Raptors do not want to waste their opportunity to compete for a championship. In the Masai Ujiri era, they have never had a good passing center. Gasol is a great one, and he will immediately add some juice to Nick Nurse’s offense, setting punishing screens and directing his teammates like a point guard.
NBA Trade Deadline Tracker – The Ringer
For a minute, though it probably felt like longer, Raptors fans were starting to panic. After the Bucks, the best team in the East, made a surprise deal with the Pelicans and Pistons for sharpshooting big man Nikola Mirotic, it seemed as though Toronto’s Finals mandate was destined to go unanswered.
But then, hope. With just over an hour remaining before the trade deadline, Raptors GM Masai Ujiri made sure his team wasn’t an Eastern elite left behind. Toronto is landing Marc Gasol in a trade that will send longtime center Jonas Valanciunas, Delon Wright, C.J. Miles, and a 2024 second-round pick to Memphis.
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In Gasol, the Raptors now have the kind of center that had always been out of reach for the team: a complete, inside-outside, floor-spacing, playmaking, defensive anchor. He has nearly a decade of bona fides as the leader of a Grizzlies team that, at times, seemed fueled purely from a deep emotional well dug out by Gasol himself. If only he weren’t 34. Still, Toronto was wise to wrest whatever is left of Gasol’s fading prime.
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The playoffs often boil down to how many playmakers each team has at its disposal, and the Raptors have now added a very interesting new wrinkle to what they can do on offense.
Top of the East can now swing superstar free agency – ESPN
The vibes out of Toronto over the past six weeks have been just a little off. The relationship between Kyle Lowry and Masai Ujiri is clearly not hunky-dory. It never has been. Lowry misses DeMar DeRozan. I’m not sure any of that bleeds onto the floor. Lowry will play his game when it matters. But back injuries and Leonard’s load management have short-circuited Toronto’s chances to build chemistry. Marc Gasol is an undeniable upgrade, but he further unsettles their rotation.
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Gasol brings a high-IQ game that can calm Toronto’s offense in crunch time of playoff games. Toronto got him without sacrificing a first-round pick, or any essential part of their future.
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Maybe the Raptors can toggle between Gasol and Ibaka depending on matchups, as they did with Ibaka and Jonas Valanciunas. Can they sell that to Gasol? Regardless, Toronto is all-in.
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