The Toronto Raptors are likely looking back at the Brandon Ingram trade with a touch of regret, especially after seeing how the 2026 NBA Draft lottery played out.

Here's the twist: the Raptors came painfully close to owning the No. 5 overall pick in what scouts are calling a loaded draft class. Instead, that pick now belongs to the Los Angeles Clippers, while Toronto is left with Ingram and a lingering sense of what might have been.

The chain of events is a masterclass in how draft picks can change hands in the modern NBA. It all started when the Raptors sent Pascal Siakam to the Indiana Pacers, receiving a future first-round pick that was protected for the top four selections. That pick eventually made its way to New Orleans as part of the deal for Ingram.

But here's where it gets wild: the Pelicans then flipped that same pick back to the Pacers for the 23rd pick in the 2025 draft. Nobody could have predicted that Tyrese Haliburton would suffer a torn Achilles, suddenly making that Pacers pick incredibly valuable. Indiana later sent it to the Clippers in the Ivica Zubac trade this February, with the condition that it would stay in Indiana if it landed in the top four. Instead, it landed at No. 5—and the Clippers cashed in.

For the Raptors, the math is simple: if they had held onto that pick and never made the Ingram trade, they might be looking at the fifth overall selection in a draft rich with point guard talent. Instead, they have Ingram, who led the team in scoring in 2025-26 but hasn't convinced anyone that this Toronto core can compete at the highest level.

In a draft class where the top four or five picks could reshape a franchise, the Raptors are left wondering if they made the right call. Sometimes, the best trade is the one you don't make.