Jamal Shead has etched his name in a consistent territory of being Raptors Nation's darling, given his committed play and growing leadership role that is taking Toronto's locker room by storm. In Shead, we are talking about a guy who has logged 27 assists in his last three games, and you want to know how many turnovers he has in comparison?
Two.
The court vision Shead has for just a sophomore is extraordinary, and the budding chemistry he has with a myriad of guys on the roster, including Sandro Mamukelashvili, Brandon Ingram, and recently, Immanuel Quickley, has been great to see. So, it doesn't come as much of a surprise that, in light of this impressive Raptors winning campaign, Toronto's de facto leader has taken the spotlight to speak with the media, where he made some very noteworthy comments after the Raptors' win over Cleveland on November 24.
A reporter would ask the following question: "Darko [Rajakovic] was saying the thing that is maybe further along at this point in the season than he would have expected is actually the chemistry. I assume he was talking about on the court but I mean you can see it off the court as well. Where do you think that is coming from?"
The 6-foot Raptors guard would respond (YouTube link here):
Jamal Shead on Raptors' focus on victory over individual glory
"... You know, I think that we still were a together team at the end of last year even though losing, even though being hurt, you know, we were all positive and it kind of led over to this year. And then you got a lot of unselfish guys, a bunch of guys that want to win. You know, I think Scottie [Barnes] could go out there and try to stat pad. You know, RJ [Barrett] could go out there, try to step back, get their numbers, but it's about winning and I think everybody understands that."Jamal Shead, Nov 24, 2025
Shead echoed what many doubters and critics have said about the Raptors' roster construction. It's a group of guys who were doubted in their ability to work cohesively, like Shead says, the stars like Barnes or Barrett could easily go out there and worry about stuffing their individual sheets. But Shead is a strong backer of how selfless this Raptors team is built to be, and he previously stated in another media appearance that the Raptors are "egoless."
Perhaps those questioning the chemistry were somewhat valid in a sense, as even Raptors' head coach Darko Rajakovic was pleasantly surprised to see it flourish ahead of schedule. Yet, it's as if judgments were made before the Raptors even had a chance to prove otherwise, and, as Shead mentioned, much of this is simply picking up where they left off last year.
Brandon Ingram might be new in town, and the Raptors might be playing some of the best winning basketball in quite some time, but Jamal Shead had to remind everyone that this is just the result of a mindset that has been brewing amidst the murky roster construction questions and beyond.