NBA Summer League is set to commence, and the Raptors kids have a lot at stake.
The NBA summer league is right around the corner and the Raptors’ youth is ready to kick off in Las Vegas starting July 8th. This year’s summer league is especially interesting for the club considering the importance of how the Raptors will deal with the young players.
The Raptors have indisputably just capped off a historical season, leaving the Raptors fans with one desire: an even greater 2016-2017 season. I’ve always believed that the importance of the NBA Summer league for newcomers is undervalued. This summer is the time to recognize the influence that the Raptors’ youth performance will have on next season’s roster.
The fact of the matter is that the presence of all 6 developing players, most notably Lucas Nogueira, Bruno Caboclo, Jakob Poeltl, Pascal Siakam, Delon Wright and the more promising and popular Norman Powell, is not required on a team that aims to win 55+ games while making their first ever trip to the NBA Finals. What the Raptors currently need in their youth are signs of maturation and effectiveness in their game.
Fans can expect to see a hungry Norman Powell in summer league games. Considering his attitude and approach towards the game, it’s expected of him to show signs of polish in his ball handling and considerable improvement in his jump shot. You can also expect Norman to add more of his aggressive demeanor utilized on the defensive end when taking the ball to the hoop. Delon Wright will have the chance to handle the ball and showcase more flashes of playmaking and driving than seen from him during late 4th quarter blowouts in the regular season. He has a height advantage over most players at the point guard position so hopefully he can use it to improve his court vision and defense. His shooting was not his strong force so hopefully he shows enhancement in his long distance and mid-range jump shot during the Summer league. The newcomer Poeltl will have the chance to show why he stands out as a traditional back-to-the-basket center. Nogueira and Siakam are two raw frontcourt players and will both try to utilize their length. Bruno Caboclo is still “two years away from being two years away”, but, hopefully he will finally show signs of preparation for the grown man’s league. As far as a trade package goes, the two players out of Utah, Poeltl and Wright, are most likely to be sent away due to their potential for their future team and the Raptors having too many players in their respective positions.
The dilemma here is that three of the aforementioned six are frontcourt players hoping for a spot in the locker room. Note that only two roster players can be active on the 905 at a time, so you can expect at least 1 of them to be packaged with a couple of role players. Terrence Ross, Patrick Patterson and Jakob Poeltl are an example of what would be an ideal trade in hopes to land the oh-so desired Paul Millsap.
Next: Raptors’ Summer League roster: some of these guys have a chance
This year’s summer league will allow the Raptors as well as other teams to get a closer look at the progress that our soon to be sophomores are making and the potential of our recently picked two first round draft players. The current goal is to land a power forward with the caliber of a Paul Millsap. Due to issues regarding cap space, a trade is the most likely scenario to happen, and, when and if it does happen, the Raptors’ youth will have hopefully well represented themselves and their capabilities during the Summer League. This 11-day span between the 8th and the 18th of July will help the Raptors come to a decision regarding which young players will stay along for history to be made and which will further be history.