Toronto is 2-0, but the payroll tells a tighter story: $201.2M, above the $200.4M luxury tax line. The salary cap is $165.0M, the first apron sits at $209.0M and the second at $221.7M, so the room to maneuver is narrow.
Over the Line
Four contracts carry the sheet. Kawhi Leonard earns $50.3M, Scottie Barnes $41.8M, Immanuel Quickley $32.5M and RJ Barrett $29.6M. Jakob Poeltl is next at $19.5M, a player option. After them the numbers drop fast: Collin Murray-Boyles is at $6.6M, Allen Graves at $4.1M and Ja'Kobe Walter at $3.8M. Toronto is over the tax line but below the first apron at $209.0M, so the bill is real and the ceiling is still some distance away.
What Rolls Off
The 2027-28 sheet shows who is missing. Barrett's $29.6M is not on it, which sits beside the hoopsrumors report on September 29 that extension talks were not serious. No outlet has reported progress since. Leonard rises to $56.1M and Barnes to $44.8M, Quickley holds at $32.5M and Poeltl is listed at $27.3M. Jamal Shead's $2.3M is a team option this season and becomes $7.4M next. Murray-Boyles moves to $7.0M and Walter to $5.9M, after Toronto picked up both 2027/28 options, as hoopsrumors reported on October 20.
Picks and Pivots
Toronto holds its own firsts in 2028, 2029 and 2030, its own seconds in 2027, 2028 and 2029, and a swap on the 2027 first. Only the 2030 second is gone, owed to the Clippers. Those picks are the cleanest currency available, because a payroll above the tax line leaves little room to absorb salary in a trade. Real flexibility runs through Barrett. His $29.6M is the largest contract that expires, so the extension question and the tax question are the same conversation. Until it resolves, the front office is working with a full sheet and a start that has not yet changed the arithmetic.
Are the Raptors over the luxury tax in 2026-27?
Yes. Toronto's payroll is $201.2M against a luxury tax line of $200.4M. The first apron is $209.0M, so the team is over the tax but below that mark.
Which draft picks do the Raptors owe?
Toronto owes its 2030 second-round pick to the Clippers. It keeps its own firsts in 2028, 2029 and 2030, and holds a swap on its 2027 first.
