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Raptors Notes: Quickley, Barrett, Poeltl, Dick

January 2nd 2024 at 2:08pm CST by Luke Adams

It would have been easy for Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic to bring his two new players off the bench on Monday and gradually ease them into the game plan, but both Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett started and played key roles in a victory over Cleveland, writes Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. Despite battling foul trouble, the duo combined for 33 points and 15 rebounds in the win.

“Obviously adding two new players in the middle of the season is challenging,” Rajakaovic said. “But both of those players are player of impact and we want to use those guys to the best of their ability.”

As Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca details, Quickley showed in his Raptors debut the kind of pick-and-roll action he’s capable of running with center Jakob Poeltl, which is something Rajokovic is especially excited about. The first-year coach observed that Quickley’s ability to make outside shots will allow the team to set higher screens, creating more space for everyone else on the court.

“The NBA is a pick-and-roll game for sure,” Rajakovic said. “I’m a big believer in making the right decisions and playing the right way and moving the ball and engaging all five players on the court. But a lot of great things can happen when you initiate offense in the pick-and-roll and that’s something we’re going to monitor with Immanuel, because he’s really good pick-and-roll player.”

Here’s more on the Raptors:

  • A Toronto native, Barrett said it was “special” to suit up for a Raptors team he grew up rooting for and that it “meant a lot” to earn a loud ovation from the fans at Scotiabank Centre, per Lewenberg and Grange. “I mean, who doesn’t want to come home?” he said. “Who doesn’t want to come home and play in front of family and friends and try to get a team that I’ve always loved so much back to where they were in 2019?”
  • Discussing the Raptors-Knicks trade on the latest episode of The Lowe Post podcast, ESPN’s Zach Lowe said there’s a wide range of opinions on Barrett around the NBA, from “future All-Star” to “toxic asset” (hat tip to Zach Bachar of Bleacher Report). “That is a word that got thrown around yesterday in my conversations with front office people and coaches—toxic asset, like you’re swallowing his contract,” Lowe said. However, Lowe clarified that his own opinion on Barrett falls on the more positive end of the spectrum: “I think RJ Barrett has a chance to be a good NBA player, and in fact has been for long stretches of his career.”
  • Raptors rookie Gradey Dick is in the midst of a two-week “special program” in which he’s doing weight, conditioning, and on-court work to improve his body, Rajakovic said on Monday (Twitter links via Lewenberg). Once he’s completed that program, the plan is for Dick to have another G League stint and then hopefully earn an NBA rotation spot later in the season. “He’s definitely going to be back with us and he’s going to be a rotation player,” Rajakovic said. “He’s the future of this organization, but he needs to check a couple of (boxes) before we really unleash him on the floor.”
  • In his latest mailbag, Eric Koreen of The Athletic explores whether Pascal Siakam has a future in Toronto and discusses several other topics, including the Raptors’ player development program, the 2024 first-round pick they owe the Spurs, and Gary Trent Jr.‘s role.
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