Going head-to-head with a true championship-level threat like the Denver Nuggets on March 20, of course I was rooting for the Raptors to come out of it with their hands raised in victory. While they ultimately lost with a final tally of 121-115, I can honestly say I walked away from this game with a lot more positives than negatives. It wasn’t a gut-wrenching loss in my eyes — though a win would have been nice, of course.
One player on the Raptors' roster who keeps impressing me during this breakout stretch is sophomore swingman Ja'Kobe Walter. He put on quite a show against the Nuggets, proving he's a formidable two-way force in this Toronto outlook.
Walter led the Raptors' bench in minutes played, seeing just over 23 minutes of action in Denver. He made a big impact with 14 points on 4-for-6 shooting, including an impressive 4-for-5 from three. He also went 2-for-2 from the free throw line, and added two rebounds, two assists, one block, and one steal.
Perhaps Walter's defining moment of the affair came midway through the second quarter. It was when he blocked former Raptors guard Bruce Brown on defense. Toronto then pushed into transition, and a composed Immanuel Quickley spotted Ja'Kobe Walter in the corner. Walter calmly took the pull-up three and sank it, capping off an incredible sequence with an emphatic finish.
Ja'Kobe Walter is quickly coming into his own for the Raptors
JA’KOBE BLOCK ➡️ JA’KOBE 3 🎯 pic.twitter.com/57fEOT4BxH
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) March 21, 2026
The second quarter was essentially the Ja'Kobe Walter show. He led the entire Raptors squad in points, scoring eight of his 14 total points during that stretch. He also went 2-for-2 from three, including the sequence I just mentioned. As the game came down to the wire in the third and fourth quarters, Walter's star seemed to fade a bit, as players like Brandon Ingram and Jakob Poeltl also began to step up as second-half threats for the Raptors.
As I watched the game in its final moments, with the Nuggets heating up thanks to Jamal Murray and Tim Hardaway Jr., I thought that Darko Rajakovic should have utilized Walter back in the mix at this crucial point. But alas, Coach Darko stuck to his certain lineups as the game drew to a close, for better or for worse.
In my opinion, having Walter out there could've been a huge boost to the Raptors' three-point shooting, which they were completely struggling to match against the Nuggets. In the fourth quarter, Denver went 6-for-10 from deep, fuelled by an energized Tim Hardaway Jr., as I mentioned earlier. Meanwhile, Toronto just shot 2-for-7 and were clearly a step behind trying to mimic Denver's hot shooting.
That being said, I still think the 21-year-old left a lasting impression in the affair, despite the defeat and late-game absence. His effort proves that he's working hard to become a strong two-way threat, a quality that is highly valuable in today’s NBA. The fact that he’s being recognized as an up-and-coming talent within this core, as I highlighted after his previous outing against the Bulls, has been great to see.
His defense, complemented by his confident shooting, is coming together at a time when the Raptors and Darko Rajakovic are determining who can make an impact in their playoff push. This level of composure, from a blowout game against Chicago to a playoff-like matchup against Denver, is a great sign of Walter's progress and potential in high-stakes affairs.