He joined the Raptors this season, helped them win a championship and will stay.
No, not him.
Marc Gasol, who had a $25,595,700 player option for next season.
Raptors PR:
If Kawhi Leonard re-signs, Toronto will be happy to have a solid starting center like Gasol for a title defense. This leaves Leonard and Danny Green – who’ll also be an unrestricted free agent – as the only core Raptors not locked up for next season.
But if Leonard leaves, Gasol will be an overpaid cog on a middling playoff team. There just isn’t that much of a market for merely solid centers, especially a 34-year-old.
Of course, Toronto knew Gasol’s salary situation when acquiring him just before the trade deadline. The Raptors got the best immediate outcome with a championship. Paying him $25,595,700 next season is a perfectly acceptable cost.
