The Toronto Raptors were expected to get trounced by the Cleveland Cavaliers due to their lack of depth, and their 45-point loss met those expectations. With Tremont Waters, Daniel Oturu, Juwan Morgan, and DJ Wilson meeting their new teammates for the first time, there were bound to be some problems.
Oddly enough, some of the new signings put together some solid performances. Even against a decimated Cavs frontcourt, the Raptors putting up 99 points while leaning on a bunch of new faces and not practicing for a week is impressive.
Oddly enough, many of the rotation veterans ended up disappointing. Svi Mykhailiuk totaled just 10 points in 36 minutes, and Chris Boucher’s 21 points were undercut by his 6-19 performance from the floor. Dalano Banton’s 3-12 evening from the field made him look like someone who hasn’t played in almost two weeks.
The Raptors will need to use these four short-term deals until they start to get healthier. Let’s examine how they performed in their first action with Toronto. Keep in mind, we need to grade on a curve given how difficult and unprecedented the situation they entered was.
Grading the Toronto Raptors’ 10-day contracts against the Cavaliers.
PG Tremont Waters
Waters went from playing his trade with the Wisconsin Herd to playing 35 minutes in the NBA. Waters was a bit of a mixed bag, especially when it comes to his efficiency from the field, but he showed enough positive traits to prove that he belongs in the NBA and can eat up minutes on the depleted Raptors.
Waters may have put up just eight points on 3-11 shooting while turning it over four times, but the 5-10 speedster had his positive moments. Waters tallied three rebounds, three steals, and six assists in this game, as No. 51 was able to display the passing skills and defensive hustle that made him a fan favorite at LSU and with the Celtics.
Tremont Waters made some plays for the Toronto Raptors.
Waters is not going to replace VanVleet on either end of the floor, but by giving it his all on the defensive end and causing turnovers, he can help provide a convincing facsimile of his production in that area. Being a quality passer is another nice bonus.
The Raptors could use these next few games as one long exhibition. Will any of these players be able to earn spots with the team for the rest of the season? Waters putting together more showings like this might be enough to convince the front office to hold on to him.
Grade: B+