With Kawhi Leonard on the Raptors, many people believe that Toronto can challenge the top contenders in the Eastern Conference. Leonard gives Toronto a chance to do that, but the Raptors' improving young core may be their real secret weapon this season.
Ja’Kobe Walter (22), Jamal Shead (24), and Collin Murray-Boyles (21) are expected to be three key rotation players for the team this season. All three played important roles down the stretch of last season, but also showed that they still have plenty of room to grow.
Ja’Kobe Walter needs to prove his three-point shot can be consistent
Last season, Ja’Kobe Walter was fighting for a consistent role at the beginning of the year, then broke out in a big way after the All-Star break. After shooting 35.0% from three in the first half of the season, he shot 47.6% after the break. He solidified his place in the rotation and gave Toronto a consistent floor spacer that the offense desperately needed.
Now, Walter needs to prove that he can continue to be that player. Obviously, 47.6% would be extremely difficult to maintain over a full season, but he does not need to shoot that well to make a major impact. If Walter can provide his solid perimeter defense while establishing himself as a reliable shooter, he will be a dangerous player on this team.
Jamal Shead needs to be more efficient
Jamal Shead does so many things well on the basketball court. He had one of the best assist-to-turnover ratios in the league last season, he is a renowned pest on defense, and despite being in just his second season in the league, he was one of this team's leaders last year.
With all that being said, Shead is also a career 38.6% shooter from the field and 32.2% shooter from three. That simply is not efficient enough.
Shead does not need to become an elite scorer, but he does need to become enough of a threat that opposing defenses have to respect him. The good news is that Shead has a phenomenal work ethic and has made it known that improving his efficiency is a priority. If he can turn himself into a respectable shooter while continuing to provide everything else that makes him valuable, Shead could take a significant step forward this season.
Collin Murray-Boyles is Toronto’s hidden ace
One of the worst-kept secrets in the NBA is how highly the Raptors front office thinks of Collin Murray-Boyles. During his rookie season, he flashed his truly special athleticism on a near-nightly basis. He showed the tools to eventually become an elite NBA defender and is always going to be able to score easy buckets because of that athleticism.
His most obvious flaw last year was his inability to consistently create his own offense. In Murray-Boyles' defense, how many 20-year-olds can create their own offense at the NBA level?
CMB does not need to become a traditional shot creator to take another massive step forward. If he learns how to create space from the high post and knock down a 10-foot jump shot, or develops a reliable catch-and-shoot three, defenses will have a much more difficult time playing off him.
Development is Toronto’s path to success
Kawhi Leonard is going to be phenomenal when he is on the floor this season, but we also know that Leonard is going to miss time. In the last four seasons, he has missed an average of 26.5 games per year. That is a lot of games that Toronto will have to survive without its new best player.
That is why the development of Toronto's young players will be so important. If Walter can establish himself as a reliable shooter, Shead becomes more efficient, and Murray-Boyles adds another dimension to his offensive game, Toronto will be much better equipped to survive the games Leonard misses and take some of the pressure off him when he does play.
Leonard may be the player who gives Toronto a chance to compete with the best teams in the Eastern Conference, but the development of the players around him will ultimately determine just how far this Raptors team can go.
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