The Toronto Raptors have already made their intentions for the season clear: flip potential into progress.
Aiming to vault off final yr’s momentum again into the aggressive panorama of the Jap Convention.
Now, because the Raptors 905 put together to start their season on Friday at house in opposition to the School Park Skyhawks, the G League affiliate is hoping for a trickle-down impact.
The junior dinos are coming off a few difficult seasons and three years with no playoff berth, equally, and never completely unrelated to the Raptors going by comparable struggles.
Whereas the NBA squad navigated its first rebuild in over a decade — and a slew of injury-riddled campaigns — it led to a gentle carousel of 905ers slipping out and in of the G League for alternatives with the large membership. A state of affairs that proved to be a double-edged sword for the minor-league crew, as the joy for particular person gamers was stymied by the 905 struggling to handle with out its normal expertise. Final yr’s 11-4 begin to the regular-season — second-best in franchise historical past — was finally dashed by a 2-17 end, with main scorers A.J. Lawson and Jared Rhoden spending a lot of that point within the NBA.
However now, because the Raptors purpose for consistency throughout the board in a season headlined by expectations, the 905 hope it’s going to imply the identical for them with a roster chalk filled with intriguing gamers for second-year head coach Drew Jones III to work with.
Normal supervisor Luke Winn has assembled a squad — balanced with promising kids and seasoned veterans (Patrick McCaw!) — seeking to mimic the Raptors in additional methods than one this yr. Not simply taking part in the identical manner, or operating the identical schemes, however, extra importantly, turning final yr’s buildup into this yr’s breakthrough.
With that being stated, listed here are 4 extra storylines to regulate heading into the Raptors 905 season.
A continuing objective for any G League crew is to construct synchronicity with its NBA counterpart. And if the 905 are going to pursue the identical ball-pressure-led strategy the Raptors entered their season preaching, count on dogged defenders Chucky Hepburn and Alijah Martin to paved the way because the presumed beginning backcourt.
Hepburn joins the 905 after going undrafted in June, and is in pole place to be the squad’s ground normal. The six-foot-two senior was the ACC Defensive Participant of the 12 months final yr after he led the convention with 2.4 steals per recreation to go together with 16.4 factors, 3.5 rebounds and 5.8 assists. And whereas pre-season supplied simply 5 video games of a pattern dimension, he nailed 8-of-16 triples with the Raptors throughout the exhibition schedule, trying much less just like the participant who shot 32 per cent from deep in his last yr with Louisville and extra just like the one who transformed at a 40 per cent as a junior.
Martin, the thirty ninth general decide of the 2025 draft, not solely brings defensive acumen and athletic upside — bear in mind his poster slam from Summer time League?! — but in addition provides loads of profitable pedigree. The 23-year-old began all however two of his 38 video games for the Florida Gators en path to a nationwide championship final season, and he is one in all 4 gamers in NCAA Division I historical past to succeed in the Remaining 4 with two totally different packages, main Florida Atlantic there as a junior. Martin averaged 14.4 factors, 4.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.5 steals whereas taking pictures 35 per cent from past the arc as a senior.
Constant guard play was onerous to return by for the 905 final season, and that is not often a recipe for achievement at any stage. Hepburn and Martin, occupying two of Toronto’s three two-way slots, characterize a one-two punch that ought to trigger regular injury on each ends of the ground on a nightly foundation.
Extra alternative for Mogbo
Jonathan Mogbo entered 12 months 2 with the Raptors on the skin trying in as free agent acquisition Sandro Mamukelashvili and ninth-overall decide Collin Murray-Boyles usurped the ahead on the depth chart.
Subsequently, final yr’s thirty first general decide was assigned to the 905 for his or her season-opener on Friday after being restricted to identify minutes and garbage-time duties for a lot of Toronto’s begin.
It provides Mogbo the chance to flesh out his recreation whereas he and the group attempt to determine his position within the execs. The Raptors spent a piece of his rookie season — together with a one-month stint with the 905 — seeking to convert Mogbo from a small-ball centre into extra of a jumbo wing after his play-finishing skills from school struggled to translate in opposition to the scale/power of NBA defenders. And whereas the “wingification” course of upped the 24-year-old’s confidence to finish the 2024-25 marketing campaign, the outcomes had been hardly conclusive. It will be attention-grabbing to see if the group continues down that path or reverses course.
Though Mogbo’s potential is simple as he was one in all simply two rookies to submit a triple-double within the NBA final season (albeit throughout the malaise of March) and he is confirmed to be probably the most versatile defenders on Toronto’s roster, it is unlikely his spot within the Raptors rotation will change any time quickly.
The 905 will fortunately welcome him within the meantime.
At first look, it would not appear to be Olivier Sarr and Julian Reese have a lot in frequent other than their positions — one is an eldest brother born in France, the opposite is the youngest in his household from Baltimore, M.D.
Nevertheless it’s precisely these familial bonds that tie the 2 collectively in a somewhat distinctive manner. Each are siblings to high 10 picks in 2024 — Alex Sarr (Washington Wizards) and Angel Reese (WNBA’s Chicago Sky) — whereas they’ve gone undrafted, stacking loads of chips on their shoulders. (Though Olivier did earn some bragging rights over his youthful bro with a game-winning lob on the buzzer in opposition to Washington in pre-season.)
The 26-year-old spent his first three NBA seasons with the Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder, most of that point biking between the G League and short-term NBA offers. Sarr helped the OKC Blue win a title final yr however tore his Achilles within the deciding recreation, subsequently lacking the entire 2024-25 marketing campaign. Now wholesome once more, he is seeking to decide up the place he left off.
As for Reese, he comes north of the border after 4 collegiate seasons at Maryland. The six-foot-nine 22-year-old averaged 13.3 factors, 9.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks as a senior as he helped the Terrapins attain the Candy 16, the place they fell to Martin’s Gators.
The 905 provides the pair of centres a proving floor and loads of alternative in the midst of the ground. Following the lack of Ulrich Chomche, after the Cameroonian teen and shot-blocking savant was waived as he recovers from an undisclosed sickness, Sarr and Reese step in as lead candidates to fill the void.
The 905 will characteristic a trio of Canucks to open the season, headlined by the return of Lawson, who was beforehand transformed to a two-year normal (non-guaranteed) NBA deal towards the top of final season.
Though the Raptors waived him earlier than the beginning of the 2025-26 marketing campaign, the Brampton, Ont. native was introduced again on a two-way deal, primed to spearhead the 905 as soon as once more. Lawson led the junior dinos in scoring final season with 19.6 factors per recreation on 38 per cent taking pictures from distance, as he was chosen to the G League Subsequent Up recreation at NBA all-star weekend. The 25-year-old swingman has confirmed he can rating at an elite stage within the minors — even flashing that prowess with the Raptors final yr, scoring a record-tying 32 factors in opposition to the Wizards — however now his efforts hopefully will not go in useless with a greater assortment of defenders round him in order to not give these factors again on the opposite finish practically as typically.
Additionally returning is Montreal’s Quincy Guerrier, who spent the summer season representing his hometown Alliance within the Canadian Elite Basketball League. Whereas the 26-year-old’s position fluctuated with the 905 final yr, with different wings rotating on and off the roster — Jones credited Guerrier’s constant presence as a frontrunner on the sidelines even when his minutes had been restricted — he confirmed his upside within the CEBL. Taking over a extra major position with Montreal, Guerrier averaged 16.2 factors, 7.3 rebounds and a pair of.4 assists.
Jaden Bediako rounds out the Canadian contingent, becoming a member of the 905 as an area tryout participant. The Brampton, Ont. native additionally spent a lot of his summer season within the CEBL, logging 22 appearances with the Saskatchewan Rattlers. The 25-year-old averaged 8.1 factors, 8.6 rebounds and a pair of.2 blocks throughout that span and may supply the 905 some good depth as a bruising backup large.
