3 players unlikely to return for the Toronto Raptors in the 2021-2022 NBA Season
To say the Toronto Raptors' season was a disappointment would be an understatement. For a team that finished among the NBA Eastern Conference's top four sides for seven straight years to suddenly fall to 12th place was hugely surprising for their fanbase.
While they struggled with the move to Tampa Bay and had coronavirus ruin their form midseason, the Raptors were still well off the pace. They parted company with too many key pieces and struggled to replace their ruggedness in the paint and scoring depth.
Looking to rebuild for next year, they will have a long offseason ahead of them and could look to offload several players to make way for new assets. The article examines three players unlikely to return for the Toronto Raptors in the 2021-22 NBA campaign.
3 players the Toronto Raptors could move on in the offseason
It's difficult to believe that the Toronto Raptors won their first-ever championship just two years ago in a thrilling playoff run and that Nick Nurse won Coach of the Year last season. Their 2020-21 campaign was so unlike any year the NBA has witnessed and was unlike any in recent Raptors history.
Playing a long way away from Canada, the Raptors won just 16 of 36 games on their temporary 'home' court this season and finished the campaign on a seven-game losing streak.
It's fair to say Nurse and the front office staff have their work cut out for them in the offseason, with three players listed here potentially leaving the franchise.
#3 Rodney Hood
Rodney Hood made little impact after arriving in Toronto as part of a trade that saw Norman Powell join the Portland Trail Blazers. The major reason the Raptors went through with it was to sign Gary Trent Jr., who looks like the star of the future with the franchise.
Hood, though, is not likely to be in the Toronto Raptors' long-term plans, or even short-term. He played in just 17 games off the bench, averaged 3.9 points off 12.7 minutes and struggled with a hip injury. His shooting took a major dip this year, connecting with 36% of field-goal attempts and 30% of three-point efforts over the campaign. He also struggled on defense, with a rating of 116, a factor in his game that has worsened in the last few seasons.
Although the Toronto Raptors may find it difficult to gain suitors for Hood, he can still provide considerable scoring depth for teams if he can re-find his stroke.