This season revealed many things about the Raptors and the state of their roster. One of the most important lessons was that Collin Murray-Boyles is ready to be one of the key pieces on this roster moving forward. He made a smooth transition to the pros despite a thumb injury and largely outplayed Jakob Poeltl in his first NBA playoff run.
Between Murray-Boyles and Scottie Barnes, the Raptors have an incredibly versatile defensive duo that offers all the athleticism, physicality, and switchability a coach trying to build one of the best defenses in the league could possibly ask for.
There are no doubts about the defensive possibilities with a Barnes-Murray-Boyles pairing. The offense is a bit trickier to develop since neither is much of a 3-point threat—although Barnes shot the three very well in the playoffs compared to his regular-season clip. If that carries over to next season, the possibilities will be endless.
Darko Rajaković noted in his end-of-season interview that Murray-Boyles would work on his shot in the offseason, but that it won’t be the most important thing. He is more focused on Murray-Boyles getting stronger and faster and adding a face-up game to his arsenal. The latter, he expects, will take the young frontcourt pairing to the next level.
“Offensively, I think that Scottie is more advanced with his ball handling and attacking with face-ups, but CMB is doing a great job in the roll and playing in the pocket pass and being a lob threat, playing in the dunker,” Rajaković said. “Adding that face-up game to him is going to help Scottie with his spacing as well. I’m going to be putting the ball more in his hands as well in some pick-and-roll actions.”
Rajaković also noted that the first time he gave Murray-Boyles the ball in a pick-and-roll, the rookie had no idea what to do and turned the ball over. He will have to get a lot more comfortable with that.
Scottie Barnes and Collin Murray-Boyles are the Raptors’ pillars at the moment
After their first-round exit, it’s clear that the Raptors will have to make some changes if they want to have more postseason success next year. Most players’ futures are in the air. The Raptors could decide to move on from Brandon Ingram after just one season and an underwhelming playoff showing. Even RJ Barrett’s future with the team might not be set in stone despite an outstanding postseason run for his hometown team.
The one thing that’s for certain is that Scottie Barnes and Collin Murray-Boyles aren’t going anywhere. Barnes has been the face of the franchise for a while now, and will only continue to get better. It’s no secret that he will be off the table in trade talks.
After the season he just had, it’s also difficult to imagine that the Raptors would give up Murray-Boyles. Teams that have star players to offer would certainly like to land him in return, but the Raptors have other assets to part with first, like an array of first-round picks and Gradey Dick.
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