Raptors news: Nick Nurse says OG Anunoby should be DPOY, Jakob Poeltl speaks

The Toronto Raptors have been begging OG Anunoby to get back on track after a very rough stretch on both ends and nonstop trade rumors, and he has responded by playing like an All-NBA defender that is trying to finish the season with a trophy he can put up in his mantle piece.

While Nikola Jokic did go 10-13 from the field in the Denver Nuggets’ tough road loss against Toronto, the box score doesn’t necessarily do justice to the performance that the 6-7 Anunoby did on arguably the best player in the game today. His defense helped slow down Denver’s offense in a record-setting first quarter.

Anunoby may not be in the Defensive Player of the Year running due to Toronto’s poor overall record, but that hasn’t stopped Nick Nurse from asserting that he should be considered as a player who is in the most elite of tiers across the NBA.

“I’m not sure who’s as versatile, period, and who’s as effective, even on the winning teams,” Nurse said after practice on Wednesday, per Sports Illustrated. “He’s certainly an all-defensive team player in my mind, for sure, if not the winner of the [Defensive Player of the Year] award.”

More Raptors news:

• Speaking on “The Raptors Show with Will Lou,” Jakob Poeltl said that the transition from the Spurs back to the Raptors has been as seamless as possible.
• It’s been a very seamless process for me,” Poeltl said. “A lot of the staff here are still the same, obviously the players have changed a little bit, but there’s still a couple of players out there that I have played with.”
• Keerthika Uthayakumar pointed out that the starting five led by Poeltl at center has been one of the team’s best groups this season, outscoring opponents by 18.8 points per 100 possessions. Among lineups with more than 125 minutes together, Toronto’s net rating is the third-best in the game.

NBA news:

• Memphis Grizzlies superstar Ja Morant was officially suspended for eight games due to “conduct detrimental to the league.” Morant needs to check several boxes before he can get back in the good graces of the league, and his team likely won’t like the fact he is absent during a playoff run either.
• Oklahoma City Thunder wing Jalen Williams has risen up to No. 2 overall on NBA.com’s Rookie Ladder, trailing only No. 1 pick Paolo Banchero in Orlando. Utah’s Walker Kessler (who could have been a Raptor), Indiana’s Bennedict Mathurin, and Detroit’s Jaden Ivey are going to round out the top five.