The Vertical Front-Office Insider Bobby Marks, a former 20-year executive with the Nets, looks at the possible offseason plans and roster details for every team in the league.

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TORONTO RAPTORS

Offseason focus

Sometimes the truth hurts.

The words spoken by general manager Masai Ujiri at his season-ending news conference are the truth.

“We need a culture reset here,” Ujiri said, and he’s right.

The Raptors, a playoff team the past four seasons that made the Eastern Conference finals in 2016, are a good basketball team.

However, Toronto seems to have become stagnant after falling in the East semifinals this season.

The Raptors need to figure out if the pieces fit, if the system is right, or if the problem is a combination of both.

Does Jonas Valanciunas fit an offensive system that features two ball-dominant guards in Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan? And can DeMarre Carroll resemble the player he was in Atlanta?

It could be an offseason of change, and the Raptors have plenty to figure out.

The Raptors need to figure out how much they want to invest in Kyle Lowry. (AP) More

A compromise at point guard

Teams often get in trouble when they reward free agents for past accomplishments while not taking into account the future.

The market will dictate what free agency holds for Lowry, but establishing a salary that balances previous success with future production is what Toronto and agent Andy Miller should focus on.

Lowry should get a significant pay increase from the $12 million salary from which he opted out.

The concern is giving a max contract ($35 million annually) to a 31-year-old point guard who has ranked in the top two in minutes played the past two seasons. He also only appeared in 60 games this season.

If the Raptors take a hardline stance, it could hurt them.

They would then have to rely on a combination of Cory Joseph, Delon Wright and Fred VanVleet to fill the void if Lowry were to leave.

Lowry will have a decision to make: possibly take less with a good team in Toronto; or sign a max-level contract with a team rebuilding and be the primary focal point.

The other free agents

Toronto’s four free agents, including Lowry, have Bird rights, so Toronto has the flexibility to sign each player and exceed the cap.

However, like every business there are financial responsibilities.

Lowry and Serge Ibaka are the team’s top priorities.

Fellow free agents P.J. Tucker and Patrick Patterson are rotational players, but are expendable based on the play of Norman Powell and the upside of Pascal Siakam.

Toronto has something that teams covet in Ibaka, a power forward who can stretch the floor, play center and create mismatches with different lineups.

The cost of being good

There is a financial cost for being one of the top teams in the East.

Now Raptors management must decide if $130 million-plus in potential salary (if Lowry and Ibaka are re-signed) translates into a roster that has already peaked or one with room to grow. Besides the high cost in salary, that would make Toronto a luxury-tax team for the first time in franchise history next season and likely for years to come.

Losing each free agent would leave Toronto with only $20 million in cap space to replace starters Lowry and Ibaka.

Summer cap breakdown

Guaranteed 2017-18 Insider info

DeMar DeRozan $27,739,975

Jonas Valanciunas $15,460,674

DeMarre Carroll $14,800,000 Extension eligible

Cory Joseph $7,630,000 Extension eligible

Jakob Poeltl $2,825,640

Delon Wright $1,645,200

Pascal Siakam $1,312,611

Lucas Nogueira $2,947,305 Rookie extension eligible

Bruno Caboclo $2,451,225 Rookie extension eligible

Story continues