3 Issues the Toronto Raptors must sort out during training camp
By Mike Luciano
The Toronto Raptors have a very unsettled overall picture heading into their 2023-24 training camp. The lack of direction shown by Masai Ujiri in the last few months has this team in a very unusual position. A first-year coach in Darko Rajakovic might not make for an ideal situation, either.
The Raptors have quite a few questions percolating around this team, and they may need to spend the entirety of their preseason schedule in an experimenting mood in order to solve them. Due to Ujiri’s own roster moves and residual friction from last year, the vibes aren’t necessarily perfect right now.
Rajakovic and the coaching staff are starting from zero with basically every player on the roster, meaning that next to nothing is guaranteed. With so little set in stone, Rajakovic will likely try to unturn every stone in order to put the best version of the Raptors on the floor.
Toronto will have failed miserably if they come out of training camp with these questions still unanswered. In a season where every loss will be vital as they chase a postseason spot, these questions could be the difference between playing meaningful April basketball and not.
3 issues the Toronto Raptors must sort out.
3. The 10th man in the rotation
The starting lineup from last season, with Dennis Schroder in place of Fred VanVleet and Gary Trent Jr. in an ancillary role, is likely locked into the rotation. Precious Achiuwa will play a role off the bench, as will first-round pick Gradey Dick. Behind that, all bets are off.
Free agent signing Jalen McDaniels will likely join Chris Boucher as the ninth and tenth men, but their status in the rotation may not be totally locked down. With Toronto moving away from “Vision 6-9” this year, could they be given lesser roles under new management?
Will the Toronto Raptors mess with their bench?
Veteran Otto Porter Jr. is still on the roster after his injury-riddled year, and the team kept Thad Young when they had a chance to get rid of him. Is there a chance that Malachi Flynn, in his fourth season, finally starts playing like a first-round pick with a new coaching staff?
The Raptors made some new additions to the bench, but it will be on Rajakovic and the rest of the coaching staff to figure out how much of an impact some of those names will have. Getting the bench right will be critical to setting this team up for success in 2023-24.