Barring any major changes, like the Kawhi Leonard trade not going through after all, the Raptors’ starting lineup is expected to be Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Kawhi Leonard, Scottie Barnes, and Jakob Poeltl. With Leonard (hopefully) returning to Toronto, the Raptors hope that this lineup, with some reliable reserves behind it, will carry them to a top seed in the Eastern Conference and on a deep playoff run.
The bench will be absolutely crucial to the Raptors’ success—more so than it may seem with Leonard and Barnes leading the charge in the starting lineup. The Raptors’ expected starting five comes with a lot of red flags injury-wise. Leonard has only played sixty games twice since his last stint with the Raptors; Poeltl hasn’t even played sixty games in a season since returning to Toronto; and Quickley played just 33 games in the 2024-25 season and missed the final stretch of last season as well as the playoffs.
Once the Leonard trade goes through—hopefully, it’s a matter of when and not if—the Raptors will be left with little cap space to fill out the roster. That means their young bench players, mainly Jamal Shead, Ja’Kobe Walter, and Collin Murray-Boyles, will have to play key minutes and be ready to step into bigger roles when injuries (or a Leonard suspension) dictate it.
Trading for Leonard is, more than anything, a sign of trust in Scottie Barnes’ ability to take the next step and be a top-two player on a contender. But it is also a bet on the young talent on the bench.
Shead, Walter, and Murray-Boyles earned this trust last season
Murray-Boyles stole the show when it came to young Raptors players last season. He missed some time with a thumb injury, but was undoubtedly ready for the NBA. He averaged 8.5 points, 5 rebounds, and 1.9 assists in the regular season—solid numbers that immediately jumped up when the postseason rolled around. Murray-Boyles put up 14.4 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.1 blocks, and 1.3 steals per game in the playoffs and quickly emerged as the Raptors’ third-most productive player despite coming off the bench.
His calling card is obviously his defense, and he already looks like an All-Defensive-level talent, but Murray-Boyles also stepped up offensively in the playoffs. He scored between 14 and 22 points in five of the seven first-round games. For comparison, he only scored 14 or more points eight times in the regular season.
Shead and Walter, meanwhile, started most playoff games due to injuries to Quickley and Brandon Ingram. Walter’s playoff run was a bit rocky, as he shot just 32.7% from deep, but he deserves the benefit of the doubt. It was his first-ever playoff run, and just a few weeks before Game 1, no one would have believed that he would have to start, play over 30 minutes a game, and guard Donovan Mitchell and James Harden.
His performances in the second half of the regular season showed his potential as a reliable 3-and-D wing, and he deserves a chance to prove that he can fill that role for a whole season. He was, after all, one of the Raptors’ best 3-point shooters, knocking down 40.9% of his 3.7 attempts per game, and they desperately need shooting, even with Leonard in the mix.
Shead, too, had to fill a role he was never supposed to have in the playoffs. Mid-second-round picks aren’t often starters on playoff teams, but with Quickley out, Shead stepped into that role and played 32 minutes per game. He struggled to score efficiently, but he averaged 5 assists per game and made difference-making defensive plays.
All three of them have earned the trust that they can play big minutes for a team hoping to contend in the Eastern Conference early on in their careers.
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