Raptors draft pick identified as a draft steal by NBA executives

The Toronto Raptors were busy in the 2024 NBA Draft.

They entered the draft with two picks and ended with four selections, and none of them were originally Toronto's pick. They drafted Ja'Kobe Walter in the first round, then took the trio of Jonathan Mogbo, Jamal Shead and Ulrich Chomche over the course of the second round.

The chatter around the NBA Draft tended to center around the top picks of the lottery or the picks of the Los Angeles Lakers, including LeBron James' son Bronny. The Raptors' picks fell in neither of those categories and have not been making waves in the weeks since the draft.

The Raptors had a quiet, bland draft

That's also why the Raptors did not figure prominently in a recent ESPN survey of NBA executives and scouts about the 2024 draft. It was a fascinating survey of how the league at large sees this class, and how Summer League play has already influenced their perspective.

It's natural for the most recent information to take an outsized place in the decision-making process, and players who stood out in Las Vegas were featured in the poll: names such as Terrence Shannon Jr. and Tristan da Silva showed up after big summers. Reed Sheppard was the consensus player to watch from the class after smoothly succeeding in Vegas.

The Raptors had an up-and-down Summer League and didn't have a standout player, adding to the expectation that they would pass under the radar of a survey of industry executives. It was surprising, therefore, to see that a Raptors draft pick received a vote in one of the categories.

When asked to select a single "biggest draft steal" one NBA executive picked Jamal Shead, the guard out of Houston taken 45th overall by the Toronto Raptors. ESPN didn't provide extra commentary, but it was notable to see Shead's name show up alongside Bub Carrington, Kel'el Ware and Dalton Knecht.

Can Shead live up to the selection?

Shead was a Consensus first-team All-American last year with the Houston Cougars, and won multiple national Defensive Player of the Year awards in addition to being the Big 12 Player of the Year. He is an absolute bulldog defensively, both at the point of attack and rotating in team defense.

The offensive side of the ball will likely dictate where Shead's career goes. If he can be a plus shooter and a capable backup point guard in terms of playmaking and ball-handling, suddenly his defense elevates him to another level. That's far from the most likely outcome given where his shot and scoring bag are now, but it's absolutely within the realm of outcomes.

Depending on your view of the word "steal" and how it applies to value, Shead will be helped by the fact that he went 45th instead of 15, but he still has a long ways to go before he will live up to such a billing. It would be fascinating to know why the executive chose Shead; do they see him becoming a starting point guard one day? A high-end backup? Can he play next to Immanuel Quickley or strictly as his backup?

With Jonathan Mogbo a reach at 31 and Ulrich Chomche a longshot developmental project at 57, Shead was the right Raptors player to be chosen. He has a chance to be one of the 25 best players in this draft, if not better, so he was great value at 45. Is he a budding star? Probably not. If he can be good, however, that may justify this one executive's faith in Shead and his upside.