3 Reasons Jamal Shead can break through into Raptors rotation

No. 1: The Competition For The Role

The good news for Shead is that his competition for the role should leave an opening for him to capitalize on. That competition would come from another key part of the aforementioned trade with the Kings.

Davion Mitchell was the centerpiece of the trade with Sacramento. He should be the frontrunner to secure the backup point guard role for the Raptors. In a lot of ways, Mitchell and Shead are both very similar molds in terms of their archetype at the position.

Mitchell's strengths are also on the defensive side of the basketball court. He has established himself as a capable point of attack defender and that has earned him playing time during his career to this point.

However, his minutes per game decreased in each of his season with the Kings. As a rookie, Mitchell was averaging 27.7 minutes per game. By his third season in Sacramento, that number was down to 15.3. The Kings were comfortable trading him away in order to make room in their rotation for their top selection in the 2024 NBA Draft, Devin Carter.

Despite having a career year in 2023-24 in terms of his efficiency, Mitchell has yet to prove that he can be a real positive on the offensive end. He tied a career-worst -2.4 defensive box plus/minus last season as well.

Mitchell is only entering his fourth season in the NBA, but he is already 26 years old. With limited growth throughout his first few seasons in the league, a rebuilding team like the Raptors may eventually choose to roll with the younger Shead.

This would give Masai Ujiri and company an opportunity to see what they have in their rookie, deeper into what could be a long season for the franchise.