It was reported from several sources yesterday afternoon that the Toronto Raptors decided to waive Armoni Brooks, which in essence, was a money-saving move knowing that he was unlikely to win a roster spot in training camp. By cutting him prior to August 1st, the Raptors avoided paying his increase in guaranteed money, which would have counted against the salary cap.
As a 24-year-old shooter with 74 games of NBA experience between the Houston Rockets and Raptors, as well as adequate on-ball defensive chops, Brooks will surely be scooped up by another team and have a chance to re-earn his spot in the league before the 2022-2023 season begins.
In a separate move that came earlier in the week, the Raptors also announced that they would be picking up Juancho Hernangomez (better known to the cinematic universe as Bo Cruz), after he was waived by the Utah Jazz on July 4th. Interestingly, Hernangomez’s one-year deal is fully guaranteed, which financially incentivizes the Raptors to award their final roster spot to him if all other tiebreakers come to negligible margins. If you’re hoping to see Adam Sandler at a game in Toronto this year, the odds on your dreams coming true just got shorter.
After this series of moves, the Raptors roster currently stands at 16 players, excluding the two-way signings of Jeff Dowtin and Ron Harper Jr., as well as the drafted rights to Christian Koloko, who will likely be awarded with a full-NBA contract once all of the dust settles.
In order to fill out the roster and bring Koloko aboard, two cuts will have to be made at training camp. The only players with less than $2M in guaranteed money are DJ Wilson ($250,000), Dalano Banton ($300,000), Justin Champagnie ($325,000), and Svi Mykhailiuk ($1,878,720), leaving them as the most likely candidates to be packing their bags. Given the commitment to sign Champagnie to a two-year deal with guaranteed money, as well as Banton’s impressive summer league showing, it is fair to assume that the two cuts would be Wilson and Mykhailiuk.
The Raptors are currently projected by Vegas to win 44.5 games next year. Every year since the 2013-2014 season they have outperformed Vegas’ expectations, except for the 2020-2021 season in Tampa, so do with that information what you choose. If you’re interested in placing bets, make sure to check out some of the best Canadian sportsbooks.
