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Several teams have been asking the Brooklyn Nets whether Mason Plumlee would be available for trade, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein. The interest is hardly surprising; Plumlee saw his playing time all but disappear over the course of the 2014-15 season, which isn’t a pattern you’d like to see as an up-and-coming player in the NBA. His minutes per game by month, starting in January, were 28, 23, 19 and 14, topped off by a paltry eight minutes per game in the Nets’ six-game playoff series.
Are the Toronto Raptors one of those teams inquiring about Plumlee’s availability? I’m not sure, but they should be. The roster has a well-documented weak point at power forward, as well as a troubling lack of athleticism. I recently suggested that Kenneth Faried be targeted, but Plumlee checks many of the same boxes. He’s basically a lower quality but cheaper version of Faried, which could be desirable should Raptors GM Masai Ujiri not want to overhaul the roster too much.
For a player just finishing his second NBA season, Plumlee isn’t overly young at 25. I reckon he still has some room to grow on the basketball court, though. Like all his Plumlee brethren, he can’t shoot, and yes, that is a problem. But it’s a problem for Faried as well, which is why I’m personally leaning towards Plumlee right now (not that the Raptors are deciding between these two players, and only these two players).
I also like what Plumlee does on the defensive end on the boards. He’s a “glue” guy if I’ve ever seen one, playing within himself and always seeming to be in the right place for a putback or a highlight block. In this way, he’s a lot like Tristan Thompson. And speaking of Thompson, well, I made the case that the Raptors should target him earlier this month only to see him become one of the top stars of the playoffs and likely the second MVP on the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers. When LeBron James says you should remain on his team, you’re probably going to remain on that team. So that ship may have sailed.
But all is not lost, Raptors fans! Plumlee and many others figure to be available, and the Raptors have plenty of salary cap space and trade pieces to work with. It should be a fun offseason.
Casey Sherman is the Toronto Raptors Beat Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @shermham
