According to multiple reports, including this of ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Raptors are signing Patrick McCaw to fill the 14th roster spot, which was opened by the recent waiving of Lorenzo Brown:
Patrick McCaw plans to sign a deal with the Toronto Raptors, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 9, 2019
An SG/SF drafted by the Warriors in 2016, McCaw’s recent months have been rather newsworthy. A restricted free agent during the summer, he encountered a bit of a holdout, was finally signed by Cleveland a few weeks ago, then went back on waivers thanks to their controversial decision to release him.
McCaw isn’t a hugely noteworthy signing, but was perhaps the player available with the most upside. In his rookie 2016-17 season, he was much more than a benchwarmer for the Warriors, logging a chunk of minutes in their 2017 playoff run. In 2017-2018, he took a drastic step down, with his three-point shooting falling down to around 24% and his season ending after a collision with Vince Carter.
At a slender 6-foot-7, McCaw can get to the rim, defend fairly well, and most importantly, has experience in big games, fitting in rather well with his plethora of superstar counterparts in the Bay Area. He can also create his own shot, but in Golden State, he was more of a spot-up shooter and cutter.
How will he fit in? Well, firstly, if you haven’t heard, the Raptors are a serious threat to come out of the East. Maybe THE threat. McCaw knows the Warriors as well as anyone, and this surely partly went into this decision from Masai Ujiri. Also, though, he will likely see some minutes as an insurance policy in the playoffs and as a supplement to wings like Norman Powell in the regular season. It’s a zero-risk, moderate-reward move for the Raptors, who now have yet another championship winner on their roster.
