Dennis Schröder

Lakers Notes: Ham, Backcourt, Murray, Reddish, Schröder

January 12th, 2024 at 4:01pm CST by Luke Adams

After ESPN’s Dave McMenamin and Substack reporter Marc Stein suggested earlier this week that Lakers head coach Darvin Ham isn’t in any immediate danger of losing his job, two more reports have confirmed as much — in even stronger terms.

According to Sam Amick of The Athletic, Lakers owner Jeanie Buss sent a “long text message” to Ham reiterating her support for him. Meanwhile, Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report says that both Buss and president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka have informed Ham that his job isn’t in any jeopardy.

“I speak to Rob every day and we’re always discussing ways to improve our team and what we can do better as a coaching staff,” Ham told Haynes after the Lakers dipped back below .500 with a Thursday loss to Phoenix. “It’s an open dialogue that I embrace and that is helpful. We’re all trying to get this right and we will.”

Here’s more on the Lakers:

As they scour the trade market, the Lakers are seeking “speed and quickness” in their backcourt, according to Haynes, who adds that the team would like to be able to play faster offensively and to acquire a guard who plays solid point-of-attack defense. Rival executives expect the Lakers – along with the Raptors, among others – to begin talking more seriously to Atlanta about Dejounte Murray in the near future, Haynes writes, though he cautions that the Hawks are making it known they’d be comfortable hanging onto Murray and revisiting his trade market in the offseason.
The Lakers appeared to have broken out of their recent slump with victories over the Clippers and Raptors earlier this week, but Thursday’s blowout loss at home to the Suns was a discouraging setback, writes Jovan Buha of The Athletic. “I think it’s just a lot of holes in our system right now,” D’Angelo Russell said. “You use the regular season to figure those things out, the ups and downs, the digression, the setbacks, all these things. Injuries just keep playing a part in our success. … I think we can still find the light at the end of the tunnel. We just got to get better, got to keep getting better.”
Lakers forward Cam Reddish, who missed games in December due to right knee and left groin ailments, continues to deal with leg issues. He left Thursday’s contest early after experiencing left knee soreness, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
As part of a larger conversation with Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, Raptors guard Dennis Schröder looked back on the 2021 extension offer from the Lakers that he turned down. The guard’s former representatives advised him to pass on it, Fischer writes. “I would have signed it,” Schröder said. “I would never just leave money on the table. My mom didn’t raise me that way.” While reports at the time indicated the offer was worth $80MM+ over four years, Fischer suggested in a follow-up tweet that that figure may have been overstated.

Raptors Notes: Barrett, Schröder, Rajakovic, Barnes

January 10th, 2024 at 9:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

Now that RJ Barrett is back home in Toronto, he wants to inspire young Canadians who dream of someday playing in the NBA. In an interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape, Barrett talked about the unique position that last month’s trade put him in as one of the most prominent players on the nation’s only NBA team.

“I am trying to let kids know that you can make it being from Canada and the area I’m from,” Barrett said. “Like the guys before me, watching Tristan (Thompson), Cory (Joseph), … (Andrew Wiggins), you can make it to the NBA. For me to make it to the NBA and come back home to play is special for me. I hope that all the kids see that … I want to show everyone how happy I am to be here and to help us win. That’s the main goal.”

Barrett admitted “there’s still a lot of learning going” on as he adjusts to his new team. He was caught off guard by the December 30 deal that sent him north of the border and he’s trying to adapt quickly to help the Raptors stay in the play-in race. He also said he’s proud of his time in New York and what he was able to accomplish with the Knicks.

“I helped build something in New York,” Barrett said. “When I came there we weren’t good. I left it a lot better than when it started. Definitely bittersweet, but I’m happy for those guys over there. They are happy about the trade they made and I wish nothing but the best for them. I grew up as a player and a person over there in New York. Those 4½ years, I will never forget.”

There’s more on the Raptors:

Dennis Schröder talked to Mark Medina of Sportskeeda about a variety of topics, including how the team has changed since the trade and the thrill of bringing a World Cup gold medal to Germany. Schröder also said he doesn’t mind being moved to a reserve role after starting for most of the season. “Either way, I still play 30 minutes (per game) like I did here (with the Lakers),” he said. “Wherever I can help just to impact the game and impact winning, I’ll do it. I think defensively, I’ll bring the energy. Offensively, I’ll be aggressive. I thought I could’ve been a little bit more aggressive (Tuesday against the Lakers). But at the end of the day, you watch film and have a breakfast meeting to get better. Then you move on.”
Eric Koreen of The Athletic looks at how the Raptors have evolved since the trade, noting that the roster changes have helped turn them into a higher-scoring team that’s much more fun to watch.
In tonight’s pregame session with reporters, coach Darko Rajakovic stood by his criticism of the officials following Tuesday’s loss, tweets Michael Grange of Sportsnet. Rajakovic also repeated his praise of Scottie Barnes, saying he shares traits with Hall of Famers that he’s coached in the past.

Atlantic Notes: Sixers, Schröder, Gibson, Grimes

January 9th, 2024 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The Sixers have been plagued by injuries as of late, with star center Joel Embiid missing five of the team’s past seven games while several role players deal with minor ailments. However, head coach Nick Nurse doesn’t want to use those health issues as an excuse for recent home losses to New York (by 36 points) and Utah (by 11), writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.

“Obviously, the easy way out is to say, ‘Oh, we’re beat up and we don’t have enough people’ and all that kind of stuff. But I can’t accept that as the coach,” Nurse said. “There is a way we want to play regardless of who’s out there, and that’s what I got to make sure to nip.

“… I just don’t accept the effort. I don’t accept the lack of defensive changes and lack of shot challenges, all that kind of stuff. I can accept shots not going in, right? I think it all works together. So, regardless of whether that ball is going in or not, you got to still be able to put some type of style of play together that you are going to be consistent with and some type of fight you’re going to be consistent with.”

The Sixers are in the midst of a stretch of three days off between Saturday’s loss to the Jazz and Wednesday’s game vs. Atlanta. Nurse has taken advantage of that break by holding some intense practices and revisiting some “foundational” habits that the team first established in training camp, according to Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer.

“Our foundational stuff has gotten rocked here a little bit,” Nurse said. “We’ve got to get that foundation solidified. That’s basic stuff: getting back and guarding the ball and challenging shots.”

As we relayed earlier this afternoon, Embiid appears likely to remain sidelined on Wednesday, but Tobias Harris and De’Anthony Melton remain on track to return to the lineup.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

While Dennis Schröder wasn’t particularly thrilled by his move to the bench in December, having him playing with the second unit while Immanuel Quickley starts at point guard has been a boon for the Raptors, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca, who writes that Schröder has embraced the change. “Whatever it takes for this organization to win, I’ll do it,” the veteran guard said. “(Head coach Darko Rajakovic) knows that, that I want to win every single night, that’s the best feeling ever.” Since Schröder’s first game off the bench on Dec. 27, Toronto has a +18.0 net rating in his 219 minutes.
Noting that recently waived big man Taj Gibson was “instrumental” in getting the Knicks through a stretch in the schedule when multiple frontcourt players were injured, head coach Tom Thibodeau referred to Gibson as “the ultimate pro” and said there will be “an open door” for the 38-year-old to join New York’s coaching staff once he decides to retire as a player, per Peter Botte of The New York Post. “I think he still has something left in the tank,” Thibodeau said. “I think he’s going to be a terrific coach when that time comes, as well. We’ll see how everything goes.”
Since expressing frustration with his role a little over a month ago and being moved to the bench, Knicks wing Quentin Grimes has hit his stride again, Botte writes in another New York Post story. Grimes’ scoring output as part of the second unit (7.7 PPG) remains modest, but he has made 43.1% of his three-point attempts in that role, including 10-of-22 (45.5%) during the current four-game win streak. “He’s back to who he is, and I expect nothing less,” Jalen Brunson said on Monday. “He works really hard, and the things he’s able to do, we’ve seen before, and now we’re going to continue to see it.”

Raptors Notes: Siakam, Trade Rumors, Quickley, Barnes

December 31st, 2023 at 8:33am CST by Luke Adams

After word of the OG Anunoby trade broke on Saturday, the general consensus among league insiders who spoke to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca is that the Raptors were just getting started, with multiple sources suggesting that the deal with the Knicks may be the first of several moves made by Toronto.

“It’s a reboot around Scottie Barnes, that’s for sure,” one source told Grange.

After previously reporting that league sources expect Pascal Siakam to be on the move sooner or later, Grange adds the Mavericks to the list of teams likely to to pursue the Raptors forward. The Hawks, Pacers, and Kings are the clubs that have been repeatedly cited as presumed suitors for Siakam.

Jalen Johnson was a player the Raptors coveted in previous talks with Atlanta, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, though the Hawks won’t be particularly inclined to include him in an offer in the midst of his breakout season. Along similar lines, the Kings have been unwilling to discuss former No. 4 overall pick Keegan Murray, Scotto confirms.

As Scotto has previously observed, Pacers forward Jarace Walker, this year’s No. 8 overall pick, seems to fit the mold of the kind of young, controllable player the Raptors would like. Walker’s lack of playing time so far in his rookie season has some people around the league wondering if Indiana would give him up in a package for an impact player.

Here’s more on the Raptors:

Finding a guard who is comfortable playing off the ball and who can space the floor alongside Barnes was a priority for Toronto, according to Grange, who says there’s a lot of enthusiasm among Raptors officials about what Quickley can bring to the team. “Quickley is the perfect pairing next to Scottie Barnes because of the shooting and floor spacing he’ll provide,” one rival executive told Scotto.
While the Raptors’ goal is to add pieces that better complement Barnes, the young forward declined to comment when asked about Saturday’s trade, which sent three of his best friends on the team to New York, Grange notes. “This is the NBA, that’s the thing, right?” Siakam said of the deal. “Like we got to be robots and just move on. Because that’s what it is. We get paid for it, right? So you have to move on… (but) it sucks. It’s not easy. For some people is the first time (they’ve been through it) but I’ve seen it happen. So I understand. … It’s a business and you learn about it every day, and every day you try to just be out there you know, like look out for yourself, look out for your teammates, and do the best that you can.”
Following a loss to the lowly Pistons on Saturday, the Raptors are 12-20 on the season, and postgame comments from Dennis Schröder indicated that the club isn’t exactly a “cohesive, well-oiled” machine, writes Grange. “When I got here, (head coach) Darko (Rajakovic) did a great job just putting this system into the organization,” Schröder said. “But I think we just got to follow that. Everybody just being unselfish, sharing the ball… to be a winning team, we need everybody, Even the guys who don’t really, really play. People got to be grateful, cheering on their teammates when they get a stop, when they get on the floor, dive, pick them up, being excited for one another. I don’t want to go deep into that, but I need to feel that because in the summer I did. … I went to war with all my brothers from the (World Cup champion German) national team. But we knew we had each other. I don’t feel it here yet like that.”

Raptors Rumors: Siakam, Barnes, Anunoby, Trent, Schröder

December 29th, 2023 at 7:56am CST by Luke Adams

Although the Raptors and Pascal Siakam haven’t generated any real traction on a contract extension for the star forward, there have been “framework-type conversations” between the two sides since early in the season, sources tell Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca.

Grange suggests that December 30 had been viewed as a key date in the extension talks, since reaching a long-term deal by Saturday would make Siakam trade-eligible again at the start of free agency in July. Conversely, a trade by Dec. 30 would put Siakam’s new team in position to sign him to an extension prior to free agency.

However, Grange doesn’t get the sense that there’s any momentum toward a decision on Siakam coming within the next day or two. If the Raptors don’t extend Siakam by Saturday and then want to move him by the trade deadline, his new team would have to be pretty confident in its ability to re-sign him as a free agent, since an extension of more than two years (or featuring a raise greater than 5%) would be prohibited for six months after a trade.

Here’s more on the Raptors:

Toronto has “no appetite for a reset, teardown, or rebuild,” according to Grange, who says the franchise’s primary goal is figuring out how to put a successful roster together around Scottie Barnes. In a perfect world, Grange continues, Siakam and OG Anunoby would remain part of the core. But that would require the team finding “better and more complementary pieces” to complement the trio of Barnes, Siakam, and Anunoby.
Gary Trent Jr. is eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2024, but he hasn’t been a part of any of the team’s contract extension talks so far, sources tell Grange.
Doug Smith of The Toronto Star believes trades of some sort are inevitable for the Raptors, given their current roster. He explores some possibilities and considers whether the team might make Dennis Schröder available if Barnes shows he can handle point guard duties in the new-look starting lineup.
Head coach Darko Rajakovic stressed that Barnes isn’t suddenly Toronto’s full-time point guard with Schröder coming off the bench, but he does expect the former Rookie of the Year’s ball-handling responsibilities to increase, as Eric Koreen of The Athletic details. “I think the main reason for doing this is to speed up his development,” Rajakovic said. “When a player is really on the ball a lot, he is just forced to make all of those decisions: how to handle the pressure and how to handle different pick-and-roll coverages, how to set up his teammates. I believe that he has those talents in him.”

Atlantic Notes: Raptors, Nets, Bridges, Knicks

December 28th, 2023 at 7:57am CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors made a change to their starting five on Wednesday, inserting Gary Trent Jr. into the lineup in place of Dennis Schröder. As Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca writes, the previous starters are the only five-man group in the NBA this season that has played at least 175 minutes and been outscored, so a change was overdue.

While the new starting lineup was technically outscored in 10 minutes of action on Wednesday, forwards Scottie Barnes, Pascal Siakam, and OG Anunoby looked more comfortable operating with additional space on the floor and each scored 20-plus points en route to a blowout victory over Washington. Schröder also thrived in his new role off the bench — he was a game-high +29 in his 28 minutes, dishing 10 assists to go along with his nine points.

Head coach Darko Rajakovic said the new lineup isn’t set in stone, notes Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca, but it should give the Raptors more information on their roster as the trade deadline approaches. As Lewenberg outlines, the team will get to see whether Barnes and Siakam fit better together with another shooter on the floor, as well as evaluating whether Barnes can hold his own operating as the primary play-maker without a point guard alongside him.

According to Lewenberg, the Raptors don’t really have the personnel to play the way that Rajakovic would like to, so he’ll have to be flexible in his philosophies in order to adapt to this roster — the starting lineup tweak, which he long resisted, is a reflection of that.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

The Nets essentially punted away Wednesday’s game vs. Milwaukee, the second in a back-to-back set, writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. In addition to holding out starters Cameron Johnson, Nic Claxton, and Spencer Dinwiddie, Brooklyn didn’t use Mikal Bridges, Royce O’Neale, or Cam Thomas after the first quarter, giving them a de facto rest day too. “I’ve got to think short term and long term and make executive decisions for the betterment of the group,” Vaughn told reporters ahead of the 144-122 loss. “So that’s where we’re at tonight. Just being smart about what is presented in front of us.”
The Nets‘ plan on Wednesday didn’t sit particularly well with Bridges, who extended his games played streak to 423 despite only logging 12 minutes, all in the first quarter, Braziller writes for The New York Post. Bridges said he didn’t want to “just get in there for the streak,” adding that he’s healthy and would’ve been fine playing more. “Didn’t like the choice and whatever that was. But it’s whatever,” Bridges said. “Definitely was not a fan.”
Echoing a recent story from Ian Begley of SNY.tv, Stefan Bondy of The New York Post cites multiple sources who say Klutch Sports has “made it clear it’d prefer not to do business” with the Knicks. While Klutch obviously couldn’t stop the Knicks from trading for one of its clients, Bondy suggests that “landmines are set and often detonated if a player or his camp don’t want to be there.” Still, Bondy believes there’s a real chance of peace between the two sides, noting that both Rich Paul and the Knicks are open to meeting to work out their issues. The origins of the beef aren’t known, though Bondy speculates within his story about some possible factors.

Raptors Notes: Lineup, Schröder, Trent, Siakam, Gueye

December 9th, 2023 at 12:06pm CST by Luke Adams

Prior to Friday’s game against Charlotte, Eric Koreen of The Athletic and Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca both made the case that the Raptors should make a lineup change. Koreen advocated for Gary Trent Jr. to replace Dennis Schröder in the starting five, with Murphy acknowledging that’s the “most obvious immediate move.”

The logic, as Murphy explains, is that the trio of Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, and Scottie Barnes would benefit from playing with at least one outside shooter, if not two. Instead, the three forwards have spent most of the season alongside Schröder, an inconsistent marksman (he’s at 33.3% on threes this season) and Jakob Poeltl, a non-shooter. The five-man unit had a minus-3.1 net rating entering Friday, which isn’t acceptable for the team’s top lineup, writes Murphy.

However, head coach Darko Rajakovic stuck with his usual group against the Hornets. The starting five spent 17 minutes on the floor together and was outscored by three points during that time while making just 2-of-11 outside shots. The rest of the Raptors’ lineups played Charlotte to a draw, but the starters’ three-point deficit was ultimately reflected in the final score: Toronto lost 119-116 to fall to 9-13 on the season.

Here’s more on the Raptors:

The Raptors are at a familiar crossroads, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca, who says the team has failed to properly judge the level of its roster and where it stands relative to its competition in recent years. The franchise can’t afford to make that mistake again and will need to be prepared to make difficult personnel decisions at this season’s trade deadline, Grange writes.
Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca explores the same subject as Grange, suggesting that time is running out for the current roster to prove it deserves to be kept intact. Within his story, Lewenberg cites league sources who say the Raptors still haven’t opened extension negotiations with Siakam but also haven’t discussed him in trade talks since the summer. Siakam will be an unrestricted free agent in 2024.
Mouhamadou Gueye has gotten off to a strong start for the Raptors 905 this season, averaging 15.6 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.0 blocks in 32.4 minutes per game through his first nine contests with Toronto’s G League affiliate. Gueye would’ve been the most logical in-house candidate to fill the two-way contract slot that opened when the Raptors waived Ron Harper Jr., according to Murphy, but he’s currently dealing with a neck injury. Using that two-way spot to sign Jontay Porter away from another organization will provide the banged-up 905 with some additional depth.

Eastern Notes: Adebayo, Raptors, Dick, Trent Jr., Wagner

December 5th, 2023 at 5:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Bam Adebayo has already been ruled out of the Heat’s game against Toronto on Wednesday. The standout big man is uncertain whether he’ll be ready to go for Friday’s contest against Cleveland, he told Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.

“I have no idea,” said Adebayo, who is dealing with a hip contusion. “This is new to me…to be on the sideline. I get reevaluated when the team gets back from Toronto. We’ll have a conversation then.”

We have more from the Eastern Conference:

With the Raptors potentially being sellers at the trade deadline, The Athletic’s Eric Koreen takes a look at five questions that will define the second quarter of their season. Among those questions is whether first-rounder Gradey Dick will start contributing to the NBA club and if coach Darko Rajakovic will swap in Gary Trent Jr. for Dennis Schröder in the starting five.
Exploring a similar topic, Michael Grange of Sportsnet writes that the Raptors are reaching a critical juncture after a 9-11 start. If they don’t show real improvement in the next two months, the front office will have little choice but to explore trades for Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby and Trent, their three rotation players on expiring contacts, Grange suggests.
Franz Wagner takes on a variety of topics during an in-depth interview with Hoops Hype’s Michael Scotto. With the Magic off to a hot start, Wagner and his teammates have their sights set on the postseason. “I think we want to make the playoffs,” he said. “Last year, I think we were four or five games out of the play-in, and my first year, we didn’t win a lot of games at all, so that would be really cool. I’d be super excited for it, and we’ve still got more than 60 games left, so we’ve got to make sure that we keep putting in the work every day and keep getting better as well.”

Raptors Notes: Schröder, Rajakovic, Barnes, Offense, Uzoh

October 28th, 2023 at 10:50am CST by Tristan Tucker

After Fred VanVleet departed the Raptors in free agency, Toronto was quick to sign Dennis Schröder to a two-year, $25.4MM contract. Schroder is the only player on the Raptors who has previous experience playing for head coach Darko Rajakovic, and that connection is already paying off, TSN’s Josh Lewenberg writes.

While there was some speculation that Scottie Barnes would assume most of the play-making duties after VanVleet left, respect was high between Schröder and Rajakovic from their time together with the Thunder, where Rajakovic served as an assistant, according to Lewenberg.

“[Schröder]’s an experienced point guard,” Rajakovic said. “We’re a new team, new terminology, new coaching staff. There’s so much new with our team and having somebody who’s been through different teams in that role of a point guard brings a calmness.”

Through his first two games as a Raptor, Schröder has been an effective passer (17 assists), an active defender, and a sound shooter (6-of-13 from deep).

“The relationship with me and Darko is great, and it’s honest,” Schröder said. “Whenever he’s got something to say he tells me, and I’ve got the same thing for him. And I think that’s what we’ve gotta do as a team, as well. When you put your egos to the side – and that’s what we did this summer with the national team – and it’s all about winning, then you can get into arguments and move on from it and get better. I think we’re moving in that direction with this team.”

We have more on the Raptors:

The Raptors got off to a great defensive start on Wednesday when they held the Timberwolves to 94 points and they have the personnel to be one of the best in the league in that regard, Eric Koreen of The Athletic writes. According to Koreen, Barnes holds the keys for the Raptors taking the next step on that end. “That’s where my game starts — on the defensive end, being able to go out there and guard anybody, taking pride in it,” the former Rookie of the Year said. “That’s just my mentality going into every game, trying to start off on defense. That leads to great offense with transition and that just leads me to stay on lockdown throughout the game.“
While Toronto’s defense has been effective, their half-court offense looks subpar through two games, Koreen writes in another piece. The Raptors committed 21 turnovers on Friday and fell to the Bulls in overtime.
Raptors president Masai Ujiri and new scout Ben Uzoh have a history together, as detailed by ESPN’s Leonard Solms. Ujiri was Denver’s general manager during Uzoh’s playing career and invited him to training camp in 2012. “Our paths were actually very organically separate,” Uzoh said. “It just kind of aligned. We crossed paths initially [during] my rookie year. I was rumored to be traded to his team when he was the GM of the Nuggets… It didn’t happen, but then they signed me to a training camp opportunity. That’s when I kind of got more in touch with him and more of an up close and personal type of connection with him.“

Raptors Notes: Dowtin, Boucher, Trent, Flynn

October 16th, 2023 at 8:21pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The status of Raptors guard Jeff Dowtin is a curious case to watch as teams begin cutting down rosters ahead of the official October 23 deadline, Sportsnet.ca’s Blake Murphy writes. Dowtin has an uncertain future with the organization, given he doesn’t own a guaranteed contract and Toronto has 15 others who do.

As Murphy details, the guard had an impressive run at the end of the 2022/23 season, making a case to have his prior contract converted to a standard deal last season. He was on a two-way deal last year before being re-signed to a separate, non-guaranteed standard contract in July. Even though he was a rotation piece at times, Dowtin wasn’t converted to a standard deal last season, and he was thus ineligible for postseason play.

It was presumed that Toronto would quickly re-sign Dowtin to a standard deal in free agency this year, according to Murphy, but that didn’t happen as the Raptors fleshed out the rest of the roster.

Murphy notes the Raptors could theoretically waive or trade another player in order to keep Dowtin, but he has limited time to prove he’s worth doing so in the preseason. If he’s cut, the Raptors don’t own his G League rights, which were acquired by the Sixers’ affiliate, so funneling him to their developmental system isn’t an option.

Dowtin is also a candidate to be claimed by another team if he were to be waived, which makes waiving him and then signing him back to a two-way (after waiving an incumbent two-way player) an unappealing option, and it’s unclear if he’d be willing to do that, Murphy adds.

If Dowtin makes the opening-night roster, his contract is guaranteed for $900K. It becomes guaranteed for $2.02MM if he remains on the roster through January 10.

We have more from the Raptors:

Forward Chris Boucher is drawing rave reviews for his play during preseason, Eric Koreen of The Athletic writes in a piece evaluating the stocks of Raptors players. Boucher is expected to be a regular part of the rotation, having impressed as a cutter. Koreen writes that Jalen McDaniels, Precious Achiuwa and Thaddeus Young have improved their standing with the team while Dowtin, Garrett Temple and Otto Porter have failed to stand out.
It appears that Dennis Schröder has supplanted Gary Trent Jr. as a starter for the Raptors. Trent had been a starter almost exclusively since arriving in Toronto in 2021/22, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Trent has expressed a desire to be a member of the starting lineup but said he wanted to help the team in whatever way possible (Twitter link). “Obviously the first two games I’ve been coming off the bench; practices I’ve been with the second unit … so the writing’s on the wall,” Trent said.
Malachi Flynn appears to be breaking into the rotation, according to Grange. Head coach Darko Rajakovic is committed to using a 10-man rotation and it appears Flynn will be a part of that. Josh Lewenberg of TSN relays (Twitter link) that the point guard dedicated extra time in the weight room this offseason, having put on five-to-seven pounds. According to Lewenberg (Twitter link), Flynn knows he has a big season ahead in the final year of his rookie deal and thinks the coaching change could be a “reset” for him.

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