While the Toronto Raptors made some tough roster decisions this offseason, their Atlantic rivals in the Brooklyn Nets were doing the exact same. While Reggie Perry was picked late in the second round of the 2020 NBA Draft, Brooklyn already decided that he wasn’t a fit and cut him loose.
Perry was a double-double machine with an improving jump shot at Mississippi State, but he was thrown into the deep end of the pool in the NBA. Brooklyn’s lack of frontcourt depth forced him to get some minutes early in the year, and called the results mixed is a generous way to put it.
Still, Perry has his best basketball in the windshield and not in the rear-view mirror, and Masai Ujiri is taking a flier on the low-post big with a solid wingspan with the hope of beefing up his all-around game.
Blake Murphy confirmed that Perry has joined the Raptors on an Exhibit 10 contract. Essentially, this is a non-guaranteed contract with a training camp invite, and the Raptors will reserve the right to either convert him into a two-way player to give him a minimum guarantee and send him to the G League.
Is there any chance that Perry makes it to the NBA?
Perry is in camp on an Exhibit 10 contract. That’s a non-guaranteed deal with the option to keep or convert, but mostly it means he gets a bonus if he sticks with 905 long enough post-camp.
— Blake Murphy (@BlakeMurphyODC) September 21, 2021
What are the Toronto Raptors getting in Reggie Perry?
Perry averaged 3.0 points and 2.8 rebounds per game in limited action with the Nets last season. While they were in the negative during Perry’s minutes on the floor, mostly due to some subpar defense, they did throw a ton on the second-rounders plate very early in his career.
While Perry might not be a positionless player due to his size, the fact he has a 7-1 wingspan at 6-9 and is willing to spot up and shoot should get teams interested in him. A bruising power forward with good mobility, making him a better defender should be the top priority for the Raptors.
Perry was teammates with No. 4 pick Scottie Barnes on the U-19 World Cup team that included names like Cade Cunningham, Jalen Green, and Tyrese Haliburton. It was Perry who came out of that tournament as the MVP, and that shows what a talent he could be on the offensive end.
Perry was teammates with Scottie Barnes on the gold-winning USA U-19 World Cup team in 2019. That team also featured Cade Cunningham, Jalen Green, Evan Mobley, Jalen Suggs and Tyrese Haliburton... but it was Perry that came away with tournament MVP.
— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) September 21, 2021
Perry faces long odds of making the roster, as Toronto has a half-dozen non-guaranteed players like Issac Bonga and Sam Dekker fighting to make the final group. However, the talent on offense is there, and we’ve seen the Raptors make crazier decisions than adding a player like Perry to the roster.
He’s likely headed to Raptors 905, but his progress should be monitored.