The Toronto Raptors pulled off the Andrea Bargnani trade with the New York Knicks to help dump his huge salary and after new general manager Masai Ujiri got that deal done, he continued to bring down the numbers, as Marcus Camby was bought out and now it appears Quentin Richardson will not play for the team as well.
According to Pro Basketball Talk and the Toronto Sun, Richardson will not suit up for the team next season and will be released, traded or waived in the coming days. The report says that it is likely that Steve Novak will be the only player in the deal to actually suit for the Raptors and Ujiri doesn't mind at all, Bargnani is now off the books and the team was able to snag a first round pick as well as two future second round picks in exchange for the former number one pick.
When Ujiri came over from the Denver Nuggets in the offseason, his biggest priority was to get rid of Bargnani and his massive contract and after doing that, the world is his oyster. The team now can make some small moves as they gear up for next summer and they also can figure out what their future plans are for star Rudy Gay, who was acquired last season before Ujiri took over. The team already signed D.J. Augustin to a contract after buying out Camby and using their amnesty clause on Linas Kleiza to get rid of his contract from the cap as well.
Ujiri's biggest move so far this offseason was to sign Tyler Hansbrough from the Pacers and that could be a huge addition to the team, as he brings toughness and rebounding skills to a team that sorely needs it. Hansbrough was done on the Pacers after the team signed David West to a three-year, $36 million and he brings career averages of 8.9 points and 4.7 rebounds in 246 games. Camby is likely going to move to a contender after he was bought out and now Richardson likely will get the same chance.
ESPN.com and Pro Basketball Talk reports that some options that fit could be the Chicago Bulls, LA Clippers, Warriors and Brooklyn Nets, but since nothing is official yet, no deal is imminent. The Raptors were also happy to hear that Canadian star and presumptive number one pick in 2014 Andre Wiggins wants to play fort the team, but that would mean that the Raptors will have to win the lottery, meaning a rough upcoming season for that to get done.
