It can be argued that the missing piece of Toronto’s puzzle was Marc Gasol, a three-time All-Star with Memphis, whose veteran presence the Raptors gave up Jonas Valincuinas for.  It was a heavy cost, but it worked out.

Gasol was not as productive as J.V. in terms of stats, but he was a proven veteran who helped to alter the team chemistry.  The Spaniard was fantastic for Toronto after the trade, and he helped the Raptors win the 2019 NBA Championship.

Gasol played one more year with Toronto, providing defense and leadership before he traveled back west to join the Lakers, his older brother's former team.

From Vienna, Jakob Poeltl played in the Austrian League for two years before going to Utah, where in 2016, he won the Pac-12 Player of the Year.  The Raptors used their First Round Pick (9^th Overall) to take the Center, and he would play his first two seasons in the North.

Poeltl averaged a little over 11 minutes per game as a rookie in the 54 Games he played for the Raptors, which may not seem like much, but it was clear from the start that he was a defensive asset.  In his sophomore season, Poeltl played in all 82 Games, the only Raptor to do so, though he did so from the bench.  Averaging 18.6 Minutes, Poeltl averaged 1.2 Blocks per Game and was 15^th Overall in Blocks.  

Poeltl was showing his effectiveness, but he was thrown in on the deal that traded DeMar DeRozan for Kawhi Leonard.   The Raptors never forgot Poeltl, and traded for him during his 2022-23 season where he continued his quiet production, but now as a starting Center.  He enters 2025-26, coming off his highest PPG (14.5 and RPG (9.6) in history.

Delon Wright was one of those players who, even though he was a bench player, was vastly underappreciated while he was a Raptor.

A First Rounder and Second Team All-American from Utah, Wright was Toronto's backup Point Guard for three-and-a-half seasons, providing defensive prowess and a nice change of pace.  In Wright's fourth season, he was traded to Memphis with Jonas Valincuinas for Marc Gasol, and Toronto went on to win the NBA Title.  Wright might not have been part of that championship, but he was a reason they got there. 

What Chris Boucher has been able to accomplish has been nothing short of inspirational.

Born in St. Lucia and raised in Canada, Boucher went from New Mexico Junior College, Northwest College, and then to Oregon.  Boucher went undrafted and signed with Golden State, playing one minute for the Dubs and mostly with Santa Clara of the G-League.  The Warriors cut bait with Boucher, and he signed with the Raptors, winning the G-League MVP and Defensive Player of the Year, and also seeing limited action in the Raptors' NBA Championship.

The Center had an established lockdown defensive game, and his days in the G-League were over.  Boucher came off the bench for Toronto over the last two years, with him averaging 24.2 Minutes per Game in 2020-21, with a fifth-place finish in Blocks per Game (1.9).  Notably, in his first three full seasons in Toronto, he never had a year in Toronto where his PER was under 20, an incredible achievement that should turn heads.

Boucher played four more seasons off of the bench for the Raptors, and though he was never a star, or even close to starting, his solid defensive game proved valuable for Toronto for 406 Games.  Not too shabby, for someone who had to work so hard just to make it to the pros.