The Toronto Raptors are coming into the season with high expectations after signing Kyle Lowry and now any thought of a DeMar DeRozan trade is off the table for Masai Ujiri as the franchise tries to build a contender and the team now may look at free agent options for depth like Ramon Sessions, Chris Singleton or Will Cherry heading into August.
The Raptors had the best season for the team in franchise history and won 48 games and the Atlantic division last year and now they come back with Lowry on a free agent deal. According to ESPN.com reporter Marc Stein, the Raptors considered a move with DeRozan last year, but now any thought of that is off the table with the way they played and now they have the chance to build more on what they did last season.
Signing Lowry was massive and now the team has more moves to make and they reportedly are signing Will Cherry. The Raptors are looking at signing Will Cherry off the free agent market and that comes after he was with the D-League and it will be on a contract that is partially guaranteed. According to Pro Basketball Talk, the deal for Cherry comes as the team is looking to fill out their bench and while it's not an open eye move, signings like this can help with depth and could help the team make the playoffs once again.
Cherry was in the D-League last season and previously went to Montana in 2013 and he impressed the Raptors in the summer league and now he is on the roster. Cherry comes in and now can help behind Kyle Lowry and Greivis Vasquez and adding Cherry means that the team is coming close to making final decisions on the roster.
The Raptors have made a number of solid moves this offseason, including adding back Lowry and also signing Patrick Patterson to a three year deal. Patterson came over in the trade for Rudy Gay and played well for the team, averaging 8.5 points and 5.3 rebounds while playing in 48 games and now the 25 year old is in on a nearly $20 million deal for the next three seasons.
The Raptors met with Andray Blatche earlier in the offseason, but so far no deal has been made and they likely will not sign him. Lowry comes back after having a near All-Star season and he had career highs with 17.9 points and 7.4 assists per game last season and he will be the main focus coming into things this year.
