Raptors beat Spurs as rumours swirl ahead of trade deadline

Toronto Raptors forward Pascal Siakam had 37 points and 10 rebounds, and guard Fred VanVleet scored 16 points as the team beat the San Antonio Spurs 112-98 on Wednesday night.

Chris Boucher had 18 points and 11 rebounds off the bench in Toronto’s third-straight win.

Gary Trent Jr. scored 15 points, and Scottie Barnes and Precious Achiuwa each scored 10 for the Raptors, who have won the past five meetings with the Spurs.

The win comes ahead of Thursday’s trade deadline that could see movement on the Raptors front as essentially every core member, from Siakam to OG Anunoby, VanVleet and Trent Jr., has seen their name float in recent speculation. VanVleet and Trent Jr. (player option) can both become free agents at the season’s end.

Anunoby has missed Toronto’s last few games due to a wrist injury.

Raptors linked to familiar face

VanVleet said after Wednesday’s game that it’s a business, and he’ll wait and see what happens on Thursday.

“We’ve got a lot of good players on a team that’s not winning. That’s pretty much it,” VanVleet said. “We haven’t played up to our standards this year, so we put ourselves in this position, and you’ve gotta deal with it.”

Prior to tip-off on Wednesday, the Raptors were reportedly engaged with the Spurs on a trade involving centre Jakob Poeltl.

Toronto drafted Poeltl with the ninth overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft. He played two seasons for the Raptors before being shipped to the Spurs as part of the deal that brought Kawhi Leonard to the Raptors.

For his part, VanVleet said he hasn’t had any conversations with Raptors management regarding a potential trade.

“Obviously, my name’s been buzzing around, so I’m sure they’re listening when calls are coming in,” he said. “[I’m] focused on trying to get this team as many wins as possible.”

Toronto will play the Utah Jazz on Friday.