"Two things can be true about LaMelo Ball at the same time. He was an All-Star at just 20 years old, a feat only accomplished by all-time great players. When he plays, the Hornets are significantly better than when he is out. On the other hand, he also misses half of every season dealing with injuries, is inconsistent on defense, and jacks up wild 3-pointers like he gets a bonus point if the shot is insane."
"The Raptors have proven over the years that they love to sniff around any star player who hits the trade market. Their name came up with Kevin Durant over the summer, with Anthony Davis a few weeks ago, and now it is being mentioned alongside new rumors that LaMelo Ball might want out of Charlotte -- or perhaps, that the Hornets are ready for LaMelo to be out of Charlotte."
"Immanuel Quickley makes $32.5 million this season, $5.4 million less than LaMelo Ball. That makes a deal between the two teams relatively easy to balance. The obvious place to draw a small additional salary from is the Raptors' glut of bench shooting guards; between Ochai Agbaji, Ja'Kobe Walter, Gradey Dick and Jamison Battle, the Raptors can afford to move one in"
The Toronto Raptors have started the season strongly but lack a settled point guard. Immanuel Quickley has been adequate but has not become the guaranteed solution envisioned after his large restricted free agent contract. LaMelo Ball was an All-Star at 20 and substantially elevates the Hornets when available, yet he misses significant time to injuries, defends inconsistently, and often attempts low-efficiency long-range shots. A Quickley-for-Ball swap is financially plausible because Quickley earns about $32.5 million, roughly $5.4 million less than Ball, and the Raptors could include a bench shooting guard to balance salaries.
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