Tristan Thompson Future Raptor?
Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Over the off-season it was pretty much common knowledge that the Cleveland Cavaliers would be bringing the whole band back together for the 2015-16 season. But in recent weeks the negotiations between the Cavs and Tristan Thompson have been at a stalemate. Thompson has been seeking a 5 year max contract worth $94 million, but the Cavs have reportedly been offering a "significantly less" salary. This has led Thompson's agent Rich Paul (who also represents LeBron James), to say that if he is forced to take the RFA qualifying offer, it will be his last season with the Cavaliers.
"All I know is TT on Qualifying Offer will be his last year with the Cavs" -- Rich Paul on Tristan Thompson negotiations.
— Michael Grange (@michaelgrange) August 10, 2015This could all very well be a negotiating tactic by Rich Paul. Making this statement in all likelyhood will accelerate negotiations between the 2 parties. Thompson probably knows that he won't be getting the max contract, but this statement will push the numbers towards his desired figure.
But let's say he does indeed take the qualifying offer, much like Greg Monroe did last season. He's basically taking a 1 year contract worth $6.8 million to become an unrestricted free agent this summer. He could still resign with the Cavaliers for a bigger deal once the cap jumps up to the expected $90 million, but I'm going to assume that like Greg Monroe, Tristan Thompson will follow through on his agent's statements to leave the Cavaliers in those circumstances. That leaves only 1 team that I see Thompson leaving for. His hometown Toronto Raptors.
The Raptors this off-season made several moves including signing DeMarre Carroll as their 3 and D small forward, as well as Cory Joseph, a championship winning point guard with the Spurs and fellow Toronto native. The one position they haven't addressed is the power forward spot. Patrick Patterson is in line to start, but it is yet to be seen whether he is the right fit alongside center Jonas Valanciunas. Patterson's strength is being able to stretch the floor, but he is hardly the rebounder or defender that Tristan Thompson is. Thompson would provide the rebounding along with the weak side help defense that the Raptors have been lacking for a while now, and are likely going to be without now that Amir Johnson is a Boston Celtic.
As for the Raptors side of things, it's been well publicized that they are likely going to make a run at Kevin Durant if he ends up testing the market. Durant of course is a long shot, because many teams are going to have max cap room and the Thunder are still the favorite to resign him. And we all know that his hometown Washington Wizards are going to be the first ones in line to try and pry him away from Oklahoma City. That would leave Thompson as the most realistic free agent option for the Raptors.
There are many angles at play here, and it's likely that we are going to find the outcome of this situation in the coming weeks, but if Thompson indeed takes the Cavaliers qualifying offer to become an unrestricted free agent, I fully expect the Raptors to be the #1 option for him if he leaves the Cavs in free agency.
