The Raptors have been a team that has historically flown under the radar. Even when their record has been good, appearances on TNT broadcasts are few and far between, as are non-playoff ESPN visits to the Air Canada Centre.
Raptors GM Masai Ujiri likely wasn’t trying to stick with this theme last summer in free agency, but his moves fit the bill.
When he signed DeMarre Carroll, Cory Joseph, Luis Scola and Bismack Biyombo, the basketball world didn’t come to a complete stop. There was no talk of the landscape of the NBA’s Eastern Conference changing or how by tinkering with the underbelly of the team — he let Sixth Man Award winner Lou Williams walk in free agency, and traded Greivis Vasquez on draft day to get Norman Powell — he’d given it the facelift it needed.