As in life, what you really want in sports is control. You can’t control everything, obviously, but the more the better.
And as free agency dawned, the Toronto Raptors had more or less backed themselves into a crossroads with Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet on one side of the road and Scottie Barnes on the other, but VanVleet could go his own way if he wanted. Team president Masai Ujiri and the front office left themselves in the position of having to make a call.
The team met with VanVleet in Los Angeles on Friday evening, and VanVleet had leverage.