Ranking every first-round pick in Toronto Raptors history
By Raju Byfield
Tracy McGrady – 9th overall (1997)
Hall of Fame. Two-time scoring champion. Seven-time all-star. Seven-time All-NBA. 2000-2001’s Most Improved Player. Arguably the best draft pick in Toronto Raptors history.
McGrady averaged 11.1 points and 5.5 rebounds on just under 45-percent shooting in 24.7 minutes per game in his three seasons with the Raptors. He started only 53 of the 192 games he played with the Toronto Raptors. T-Mac averaged 15.4 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists on 45-percent shooting in 31.2 minutes per game in his final season with the Raptors, but was still only allowed to start 34 of his 79 contests due to the presence of defensive stopper Doug Christie.
Tracy McGrady heartbreakingly left the Toronto Raptors in 2001 to be the star of own team. He joined forces with a post-injury Grant Hill in what some (such as Rob Parker on his Odd Couple radio show last week) point to as the first example of multiple free agents conspiring to play together in a specific city.
T-Mac has frequently cited cable (pre-streaming and IPTV days) and taxes as two of the hardest parts of playing in Toronto. Doug Christie starting over him while his cousin shined at small forward may have played a correlative factor as well. The Raptors knew he was going to walk and explored trades throughout the season most notably (at the time) for Larry Hughes.
T-Mac would go on to have a Hall of Fame career for the Orlando Magic and the Houston Rockets before recurring back issues cut his career short. He was at his statistical best as a member of the Magic where he averaged 28.1 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.5 steals and a block per game over 295 contests. His best season came in 2002-03 when he averaged an amazing 32.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 5.5 assists on just under 45-percent shooting. The shooting percentage was the high watermark for his career.
T-Mac was at his best however as a member of the Houston Rockets where he remained dominant despite sharing the scoring load with Yao Ming. As a Rocket, he averaged 22.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.6 assists. His best season as a Rocket came in 2006-07 when he averaged 24.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 6.5 assists on 43-percent shooting.
The first high school player taken in the 1997 NBA Draft, Tracy McGrady was a fantastic pick by the Toronto Raptors. There were no significant players taken behind him and it was exciting that the Raptors were willing to go the high risk/high reward route as opposed to going with a safe pick.
The most notable players to be drafted after the Hall of Famer were former Raptors Alvin Williams and Anthony Parker, and former NBA Champion Stephen Jackson. Jackson and Williams were both second-round picks.
McGrady was the right pick then and in retrospect was an absolute steal. He is one of only two players from that class currently in the hall of fame. T-Mac would be higher on this list if he played more than just three seasons with the Toronto Raptors or shot at a higher percentage over the course of his career.