Immanuel Quickley continues to be one of the Raptors' most talked about assets throughout the offseason, whether it’s about his contract, high aspirations for improvement, or, in the case of what I’m about to dive into, reflecting on the past five years since IQ was drafted in 2020.
Sam Vecenie of the Game Theory Podcast hosted an episode, along with co-host Bryce Simon, titled "2020 NBA Re-Draft! | Where do Ant, LaMelo, Haliburton, and more get picked?" In this episode, they discussed Quickley after ranking the ex-Kentucky Wildcat ninth overall in their reimagined draft order.
Vecenie raises a very important point about the Raptors' guard's best fit in the NBA as a sixth man, both from a personal perspective and backed by statistical evidence to support his claims.
NBA analysts highlight Immanuel Quickley's best days as a sixth man
"... five years of really solid production is the reality. Two-time, top 10 in Sixth Man of the Year. Over those five years has averaged 14 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.7 assists, shooting 42%, 38% 86%. Has consistently been around league average in terms of true shooting over the last three years particularly. 100 [percentile] in 2023 when he was second in Sixth Man of the Year, so right on league average. 99, 99th percentile in terms of true shooting percentage in his first year in Toronto that he split with New York ... let's call him a lower half starting point guard in the NBA. The numbers in terms of efficiency basically look the same in the 71 games he's played with Toronto — looks like a lower half starting point guard in the NBA. "Sam Vecenie, Sep 4, 2025
Co-host Simon would chime in on the subject, noting the following:
"I think the thing with IQ is whenever he's in the starting lineup, I don't love him as much. Whenever he's coming off the bench and like competing for Sixth Man of the Year stuff where he's finished second and 10th — I kind of love him in that role."Bryce Simon, Sep 4, 2025
Coming over to Toronto via New York, the hope was that Quickley could elevate his outstanding sixth man efforts to a higher level, allowing him to be an effective starter. While the pair acknowledge that Quickley has been a serviceable starting point guard for Toronto, the idea of him being a "lower half starting point guard" hits the nail on the head.
The Raptors paid Quickley not just starter-level money, but star, if not elite-level talent money, and now he's expected to step into that role in the highest regard. If he doesn't produce effectively or continues to be plagued by injury issues, Toronto will unquestionably be at a loss on the investment.
I raised an intriguing idea of possibly shifting RJ Barrett's role into a sixth man capacity, but in the case of Immanuel Quickley, the fact he's being paid an absurd amount over a longer period leaves no other choice but to have him in a starting role. Plus, Toronto's guard depth is already lacking heavily as is. I definitely see the appeal of having a sparkplug scorer like IQ leading the pack off the bench — now that thought is just a figment of the past.