Next summer, higher salary player contracts will continue to appeal to free agents that look to take full advantage of the new NBA TV deal. Throughout the 2015-2016 season, the Toronto Raptors front-office will surely have their eyes on soon to be free agent DeMar DeRozan, who at the moment seems to be the Raptors’ most legitimate option of a “franchise player”.
Reports from Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun, indicate that “DeMar DeRozan’s camp will be after the new mid-max (a whopping $25.3 million) a year from now”
With over half the teams in the league able to offer a max-contract come the 2016 off-season, DeMar DeRozan should be expecting a lot calls proposing that offer to come his way. The Raptors should be one of those many callers, considering their current cap-space isn’t already restricted and devoted to any other max-players.
However, before free-agency strikes, Raptors GM Masai Ujiri could be the one with his ear to the phone, deciding if it’s worth it or not to deal his most valuable piece before this season’s trade deadline.
DeRozan, who last year held the Raptors’ highest usage percentage, will have another season to validate that his scoring abilities deserve the big bucks. In five of the six years DeRozan has been part of the Raptors, their record has improved, setting franchise records in consecutive seasons. He’s also helped them make two playoff appearances since the departure of Chris Bosh. In doing all that, it’s hard to find an explanation as to why Masai would trade him, unless DeRozan were to insist on wanting to leave.
The Raptors GM wouldn’t be any stranger to that situation, considering he’s earned the GM of the Year Award for his ability to create contenders without any stars on his teams. Most notably, the 2012-13 All-Starless Denver Nuggets, who went from having an unhappy Carmelo Anthony traded from their roster, to holding the Western Conference‘s third seed with a 57-25 record.
But for this season to come, putting contract negotiations aside, Masai Ujiri will hope to receive a healthy season from his roster’s most lethal scorer.
The Raptors started the 2014-2015 campaign with a record of 12-3 before DeRozan went out with an injury, forcing him to miss the next 21 games. His injury was especially unfortunate after witnessing the progress he made as part of the 2014 USA squad that won gold at FIBA. Surrounded by the league’s best last summer, DeRozan made strides to improve both his shooting efficiency and long-distance capabilities.
The set-back was long enough to force DeRozan to miss an All-Star selection, but not enough to derail his progress. To earn his 2013-14 All-Star selection, DeMar averaged 22.4 points on 42.8 FG%, 31.8 3FG%, 79.8 FT%. Those numbers, that placed him amongst the league’s best shooting guards a year earlier, would improve to 22.0 points on 43.2FG%, 34.8 3FG%, 86.9 FT%, after the 2014-15 All-Star break.
Being only 26 years of age, there is still more up-side to be discovered in DeRozan. This makes the hiring of Jerry Stackhouse as an assistant coach, a great move by Masai Ujiri. Stackhouse’s veteran presence in the locker-room will help mentor and challenge DeMar Derozan to the next level in his game.
As a former two-time All Star, Jerry Stackhouse has encountered countless situations as a pro. Nothing stands out more impressively in Stackhouse’s care
er than his 2000-01 season, in which he averaged 29.8 points a game while leading the league in free-throws made, and field-goals attempted. Being an athletic two-guard with similar career numbers (40.9 FG%, 30.9 3FG%, 82.2 FT%), Stackhouse will help provide guidance to DeMar DeRozan’s growing offensive repertoire.
Stackhouse, and newly acquired defensive specialist Andy Greer, who served five years under Coach Thibodeau on the Chicago Bulls, will have the chance to improve all the different components of DeMar’s game, including his defence. Greer’s record in the Windy City speaks volumes, considering he helped run a top ten defensive team each year for the Bulls, while helping the development of players like Luol Deng and Jimmy Butler.
The threat of having DeMar DeRozan become a better two-way player will surely improve the Raptors chances against the Eastern Conference‘s strongest back-courts. Not to mention, an improvement to DeRozan’s already elite game should only help validate the mid-max deal the Raptors will be in-line to give him come the 2016 offseason.
