Gradey Dick flashing NBA skills in Summer League should excite Raptors fans

The Toronto Raptors have not had the best go of it in Summer League play, as they are now 0-2, with both of their losses looking reasonably unimpressive. The play of Gradey Dick has been the talk of the town around Toronto, and the results have been mixed early on.

Dick struggled in his first action, making just three of his 12 shots in a game that Markquis Nowell and Moses Brown dominated. With Nowell struggling from the field and Brown only playing a handful of minutes, Dick stood out as the one player who actually looked to be locked in.

Dick finished with 11 points, eight rebounds, and four assists despite barely touching the ball in the second half. While he had the intoxicating highs that names like Jabari Smith and Keyonte George have shown off, there are signs that Raptors fans will be very impressed with how the No. 13 pick pans out.

With Dick being the main facilitator and scorer on a team that might, at best, have three other NBA bench players on it, his skills were not used in the most effective way possible. With real NBA players alongside him, Dick will continue to show that he can be an effective scorer at this level.

Gradey Dick has shown flashes for the Toronto Raptors.

Dick has shown to be much further along on defense than many expected, as his active hands have led to multiple steals early on. While not a tremendous on-ball defender, Dick has held his own against a few players who project to get minutes in the pros next season.

Dick hasn’t been shooting like Steph Curry, but he’s a solid shooter still. Showing he has improved some of the pre-draft flaws surrounding him as a player is worth more than hitting a couple of 3-pointers against players that will be playing in Europe this season.

His issues have been made clear, however. The lack of a terrific handle will limit his scoring opportunities as a rookie, and the lack of muscle looked to be a serious problem at times. He’ll need to put on around 10 pounds before he has any chance of maximizing his potential.

The Raptors have a very promising player on their hands, even if Summer League may not always be the best display of his skills. The highs they fell in love with are present, and he is working on correcting his issues.