The Toronto Raptors are poised to make some serious noise and could even emerge as true championship contenders during the upcoming NBA season. They’re acquiring superstar forward Kawhi Leonard, who led them to their first and only title in 2019, from the Los Angeles Clippers, and their projected starting five looks rock-solid.
However, their second unit remains a concern after ranking 24th in bench scoring this past season. Adding one or two reinforcements would go a long way, especially amid the Eastern Conference arms race.
Now, there are rumblings that the Raptors could reunite with another one of their former stars.
DeMar DeRozan Could Head Back to Toronto
On Monday, the Sacramento Kings waived 17-year veteran forward DeMar DeRozan. According to NBA insider Jake Fischer, the Raptors are not only interested in the six-time All-Star, but there is also growing excitement surrounding a potential reunion between the two sides.
“He has, on social media, started to put out some type of messaging that maybe he’d be interested in a reunion up north with Toronto in the middle of this Raptors renaissance, where Kawhi gets traded back to the Raptors and Kyle Lowry signs a one-day deal to go retire with the franchise that he won the 2019 championship with,” Fischer said of DeRozan.
“… I do think there’s a lot of excitement in Toronto about potentially having DeMar back in the fold as well.”
Jake Fischer on DeMar DeRozan’s potential next team, after his contract got waived by the Sacramento Kings:
-The two teams that could be in the race for DeMar would be the Miami Heat and Toronto Raptors.
-He thinks “there’s a lot of excitement in Toronto” regarding a potential… pic.twitter.com/xyXb0bHY0Q
— Omer Osman (@OmerOsman200) July 6, 2026
DeRozan, who will turn 37 on Aug. 7, was taken by the Raptors with the No. 9 pick in the 2009 NBA Draft. The Compton, California native quickly emerged as a stud and made his first All-Star team in 2014.
By then, he had elevated the Raptors, who had been in existence for nearly 20 years but had seldom been competitive, into a legitimate playoff team. That started a streak of seven consecutive postseason appearances for the organization, but for a while, it had trouble getting to the next level.
In 2018, Toronto flipped DeRozan to the San Antonio Spurs for Leonard, who led it to the promised land the following June. Leonard then promptly joined the Clippers just weeks later.
DeRozan is the Raptors’ all-time leading scorer with 13,296 points, and he is also first all-time in games and minutes played among players who have suited up for the franchise. Leonard may have delivered the Raptors the Larry O’Brien Trophy, but DeRozan laid the foundation about a decade ago.
DeRozan averaged 18.4 points on 49.7% shooting and 4.1 assists per game this past season with Sacramento. He could make an outstanding sixth man for a Toronto team looking to join the Philadelphia 76ers, Miami Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, and the reigning NBA champion New York Knicks in the upper echelon of the East.
