Jamal Shead

Eastern Notes: Ball, Holland, Raptors, Hornets, G League

October 30th, 2024 at 4:02pm CST by Luke Adams

After the Bulls announced on Tuesday that Lonzo Ball has been diagnosed with a sprained right wrist and will be sidelined for at least 10 days, the veteran point guard spoke to reporters on Wednesday about the injury, explaining that it falls between a Grade 1 and Grade 2 sprain, according to Jamal Collier of ESPN.

“If I play on it right now while it’s still swollen, it could get to a Grade 3. That would require surgery,” said Ball, who had a brace on his right wrist. “Trying to avoid that obviously. Let the swelling down, hopefully tape it up and get back to it.”

It’s an unfortunate setback for Ball, given that his comeback from two-and-a-half lost seasons due to knee surgeries had been off to as good a start as he and the team could have hoped for. Although Ball’s early-season numbers (4.7 points, 3.7 assists, and 2.7 rebounds in 15.7 minutes per game on 35.7% shooting) don’t jump off the page, he hasn’t experienced any setbacks related to his left knee and the team has a +20.3 net rating in his 47 minutes of action.

“An unfortunate moment, but it happens,” Ball said. “Hopefully I get over it as fast as possible and get back to business.”

Here’s more from across the Eastern Conference:

No. 5 overall pick Ron Holland has played a modest role so far for the Pistons, averaging 13.3 minutes per night through his first four NBA games and contributing 5.3 PPG and 3.3 RPG. Still, head coach J.B. Bickerstaff has liked what he’s seen from the 19-year-old rookie, writes Spencer Davies of RG.org. “The thing that’s been most impressive is he’s just fearless,” Bickerstaff said recently. “You watch some of the guys that he’s gone after defensively, gotten in a few skirmishes already. But (he) just hasn’t backed down from anybody. To be a rookie and young at that, to come in and take on challenges of these proven, veteran guys, I just have a ton of respect for that.”
Once lauded for the rises of unheralded prospects like Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam, the Raptors‘ player development program hasn’t had nearly as many wins in recent years. However, that could be changing this season, per Eric Koreen of The Athletic, who takes a look at the promising early-season progress Toronto is seeing from rookies Jonathan Mogbo, Jamal Shead, and Jamison Battle.
James Jordan, who had been serving as the Hornets‘ executive vice president and chief operating officer, will move into a senior advisory position beginning this weekend, as Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer details. The older brother of former Hornets owner Michael Jordan, James Jordan has been employed by the franchise since 2013.
The Bulls‘ and Pistons‘ G League affiliates are among the teams to announce their training camp rosters this week. The Windy City Bulls’ roster includes veteran NBA guard Ryan Arcidiacono and former lottery pick Joshua Primo, while wings Lamar Stevens and Dereon Seabron are among the former NBA players on the Motor City Cruise’s squad (Twitter link).

Atlantic Notes: Bridges, Towns, Tatum, Thomas, Shead

October 23rd, 2024 at 2:04pm CST by Luke Adams

Neither of the Knicks‘ two major offseason acquisitions got off to the sort of start they were hoping for this season on Tuesday night in Boston.

While Mikal Bridges salvaged his night to some extent by making 7-of-8 shots for 16 points in the second half, he went scoreless on 0-of-5 shooting in the first two quarters, didn’t grab a single rebound in his 35 minutes on the court, and was a team-worst minus-33 in his Knicks debut, writes Peter Botte of The New York Post. Bridges also admitted he wasn’t at his best defensively against Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, who poured in 37 points.

“I definitely could have done better. I think my performance at the defensive end wasn’t that (good) for me personally, as well as our team,” Bridges said. “Me personally, I think I just could have been better, especially (against) a guy getting it and having that rhythm from the three, just getting up a little bit more (on Tatum).”

Meanwhile, Karl-Anthony Towns had a relatively quiet night in his first game as a Knick, scoring 12 points and recording seven rebounds. The Celtics also frequently targeted him in screening actions, as Botte writes in a separate New York Post story. Like Bridges, Towns didn’t express concern about New York’s offense, but said the defense needs to be better.

“I just think that we just didn’t do enough defensively to give ourselves a chance to win the game,” the four-time All-Star said. “We’ve just gotta do a better job of executing on that end. Our defensive identity is what’s gonna give us a chance to do something great. Offensively, I think we showed tonight we can score, we’ve just gotta play defense.”

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

Ahead of Tuesday’s regular season opener, Tatum spoke to Marc J. Spears of Andscape about what it means to have won his first title and why he believes the Celtics are well positioned to win another championship.
None of the three Nets players eligible for rookie scale extensions signed a new contract before Monday’s deadline, but that was expected, since Day’Ron Sharpe and Ziaire Williams have played limited roles in their first three NBA seasons and extending Cam Thomas would’ve eaten into Brooklyn’s projected 2025 cap room. As Brian Lewis of The New York Post relays, Thomas said on Tuesday he’s not bothered by not having completed a deal, while head coach Jordi Fernandez told reporters he didn’t feel the need to discuss the guard’s contract situation with him. “Yeah, conversations have been great. I think he’s in a good place, and I didn’t see anything that I should go and talk to him about it, the way he feels,” Fernandez said. “I think he’s been great. He’s done his job, and we have a clear path and direction for what we’re trying to do.”
In an in-depth feature for Sportsnet.ca, Blake Murphy takes a closer look at what the Raptors are getting in Jamal Shead, a “high-IQ, high-motor” rookie guard who may have been overlooked this offseason as the third of four players selected by Toronto in the 2024 draft. “Jamal actually should have gone in the first round,” Kelvin Sampson, Shead’s former coach at Houston, said of the No. 45 pick. “There’s such an undervaluing of the things that he does well. … If you’re a coach, you want Jamal. All he does is win.”

Atlantic Notes: McCain, Yabusele, Raptors Injuries, Shead, Walker

October 17th, 2024 at 10:46pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Promising Sixers rookie guard Jared McCain took a hard fall late in the fourth quarter of Philadelphia’s Wednesday preseason game against the Nets. He was down for a while, according to ESPN’s Tim Bontemps (Twitter link), but he was able to get up under his own power.

Head coach Nick Nurse said McCain went to the hospital to be evaluated and the Sixers announced he’d be checked for a concussion, according to Bontemps.

McCain was reevaluated on Thursday afternoon and was diagnosed with a pulmonary contusion, but has not displayed symptoms consistent with a concussion (Twitter link via NBA insider Chris B. Haynes). McCain is out for Friday’s preseason finale against the Magic and will continue to be evaluated daily.

Missing McCain for any time is a blow for the Sixers, but avoiding a concussion is good news for the young guard. He’s been a preseason revelation for the team, averaging 12.8 points and shooting 37.9% on 5.8 three-point attempts per game.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Sixers forward Guerschon Yabusele made headlines in the Olympics after playing well for the French national team, then parlayed that performance into a contract with Philadelphia, his first since the 2018/19 season. Andscape’s Marc J. Spears details Yabusele’s return to the league in a recent feature. “My advice is just work hard, never give up and make your dream come true. If you want it, you’re going to have to go get it,” Yabusele said.
Raptors guard Immanuel Quickley went through a full practice on Thursday for the first time since the start of training camp, Josh Lewenerg of TSN reports (Twitter link). Quickly is questionable for the team’s Friday preseason finale against Brooklyn. According to Sportsnet.ca’s Michael Grange (Twitter link), the guard is still sporting a brace on his thumb. Meanwhile, RJ Barrett is still recovering from shoulder surgery and will not travel for the preseason finale. The hope for Barrett is that he’s ready for the start of the regular season, but there are no guarantees. Ja’Kobe Walter is dealing with the same shoulder injury as Barrett but he’s about 10 days ahead in the recovery process, according to Lewenberg (Twitter links). Walter has yet to be cleared for contact.
With Quickley soon to return and Davion Mitchell and Jamal Shead both playing well in the preseason, it’s possible the Raptors could roll with three point guards in their regular season rotation. However, according to Lewenberg (Twitter link), Darko Rajakovic‘s comments suggest Shead may start the season as the third-stringer, not part of the regular rotation. “I think it’s amazing that we have three point guards, and in practice you could see that everybody is pushing each other,” the Raptors’ head coach said. “Davion is making Quickley better. Jamal is making Davion better. They’re really, really competing and every team wishes for that. When you have more players competing for the same spot, it makes everybody better.”
With the Celtics cutting all their non-guaranteed camp invitees except for Lonnie Walker, it puts the seventh-year guard in the spotlight ahead of final cuts. Souichi Terada of MassLive believes Boston will ultimately waive Walker, since keeping him for the season would cost upward of $10MM in additional tax penalties due to the team’s position against the second apron. The Celtics have also opted to keep that 15th roster spot open to start the season in recent years.
Earlier this offseason, former Knicks manager of coaching analytics Nick Restifo left for the Hawks to be their director of basketball research. According to Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link), the Knicks hired CB Garrett, previously with the Bucks, to replace him.

Atlantic Notes: George, McCain, Shead, VanVleet, Horford

October 12th, 2024 at 9:24am CST by Rory Maher

Nine-time All-Star Paul George was the most accomplished player to switch teams in free agency over the summer, inking a four-year, $212MM contract with the Sixers. He made his preseason debut with Philadelphia on Friday night vs. Minnesota, recording 23 points (on 8-of-15 shooting), six rebounds and two assists in 26 minutes, per The Associated Press.

With the obvious caveat that it was only a preseason game, it was still an encouraging sign of what the 76ers could look like if their “big three” of Joel Embiid, George and Tyrese Maxey are healthy, writes Tony Jones of The Athletic.

“He’s pretty good at basketball,” Maxey said of George. “I can see the vision. I really do. My goal coming into tonight is to see how comfortable he can get and to try and make him as comfortable as possible. It’s amazing to see what things he can do on the floor. I wanted to try and sit back and watch and see how he fits in and see how I can help him fit in. It was good to see him on the floor.”

President of basketball operations Daryl Morey admits the Sixers’ pursuit of George was “risky,” but he believes Philadelphia is now firmly on the short list of title contenders, he tells Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic.

“I feel like we’re one of the top few teams,” Morey said. “I think Boston’s pretty clearly the team that deserves to be called the favorite. They played great last year. They played really historically well, but I think we have a shot to get right in there, in the mix with them, and beat them this year.”

Here’s more from the Atlantic:

Rookie guard Jared McCain, the 16th pick of the 2024 draft, says he’s focused on improving defensively during the Sixers‘ preseason slate, as Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer relays. “I’m really not trying to set expectations for myself,” McCain said. “I feel I played well [in the exhibition opener against the New Zealand Breakers], [but I] definitely have things to work on defensively. But what I’ve always tried to do, especially in college, is focus on my defense, focus on playing hard, and my offense will come.”
Second-round pick Jamal Shead has quickly endeared himself to the Raptors with his defense, hustle, and willingness to accept his role, according to Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. Former Raptor Fred VanVleet, another small guard, sees similarities between his game and Shead’s, and the rookie says he’s hoping to emulate VanVleet’s NBA success. “He’s somebody that you look at as a role model,” Shead said of VanVleet. “Being in [college at] Houston, I got to see him [last season], just going up to [the Rockets] facility, watching him workout, watching him play. He’s somebody that’s my size, does what I do and shoots the ball a lot better than me. So, he’s just a role model and somebody that I can look at and try to be like in this league. Toronto’s known for doing smaller guards justice, so he set the pathway for me and I’m just trying to figure out how I can do what he did.”
Celtics big man Al Horford sat out Boston’s preseason games vs. Denver in Abu Dhabi, but he’ll make his 2024/25 debut this weekend, per Brian Robb of MassLive.com. The Celtics have back-to-back home games this weekend vs. Philadelphia and Toronto. “Just ramping him up,” Mazzulla said of Horford. “We’re still talking about that. He’ll definitely play in one of them, maybe two, just kind of ramping him up and making sure he stays sharp. That’s all.” The 38-year-old veteran will make $9.5MM this season in the final year of his contract.

Atlantic Notes: Fernandez, Barrett, Shead, Sixers’ Wings

October 7th, 2024 at 10:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

New Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez has established a rugged tone in training camp, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes.

“Probably one of the most unique, and hardest training camps I’ve been through in these 12 years now,” guard Dennis Schröder said. “Like it, though, so far. Everybody’s buying into it. Coach and coaches are doing a great job of keeping us organized and together. It’s been great.”

Forward Dorian Finney-Smith shared similar thoughts on the first week of camp.

“We’re going to be well-conditioned,” Finney-Smith said. “The people I talk to around the league, they all had great things to say about him, so I knew what to expect. I heard he was a hard worker and he’d want us to compete. That’s what he’s been asking us.”

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

RJ Barrett didn’t play in the second half of the Raptors’ preseason game against Washington on Sunday due to a bruised right shoulder, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet. Prior to the injury, Barrett scored 17 points in 14 minutes. He’ll be reevaluated early this week.
Second-round pick Jamal Shead showed off his defensive skills in the same game. He matched up against fellow rookie Carlton Carrington, who missed all six of his shots and committed three turnovers. “Me and him have a little bit of a history, he got the best of me in a pre-draft workout,” Shead told Grange. “So I had to come out and make it as hard as possible … he’s going to be really good, but I had to give him a taste of NBA-ready defense.”
The Sixers have a lot of versatility, especially at the wing spots, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer notes. They are projected to start three wing players in Paul George, Caleb Martin, and Kelly Oubre. They also have options coming off the bench in Eric Gordon, Ricky Council IV, and KJ Martin. “I like to be super versatile, and you got to be able to shift people all over the place,” coach Nick Nurse said. “We do have a lot more in the middle that we can shift around.”

Atlantic Notes: Sixers, Council, Hauser, Shead

July 15th, 2024 at 5:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Sixers have enjoyed a banner offseason with their ample cap space, signing top priority Paul George, as well as Caleb Martin, Andre Drummond and Eric Gordon. They also gave Tyrese Maxey a max rookie scale extension and re-signed Kelly Oubre and Kyle Lowry. Nick Nurse can’t wait to put all the pieces together.

“We certainly had a great summer,” the Sixers’ head coach said, per Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. “There’s just no other way of looking at it in that there’s a lot of guys that we targeted that were at the very top of our list, and a lot of categories that we needed to fill, and we got a lot of them.”

Nurse is especially excited by the prospect of George complementing the skills of the other Sixers stars, Maxey and Joel Embiid. “We had the one, five [positions] solidified. We needed something in the middle. That’s PG,” he said. “We are going to have to wait and see. I’m sure it’s going to take some time, you know, for total connection and chemistry, but obviously they all can score at all levels. So it should be a great fit.”

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Ricky Council has emerged as a go-to scorer during Summer League action and could jump into the Sixers’ rotation next season, Pompey writes in a separate story. Council was signed to a four-year contract in April. “If you can play basketball, someone will find you at some time,” assistant coach Mike Brase said. “It might be when you are young in the process and being recruited or when you get older. And in Ricky’s case, he went to Wichita State and Arkansas and [goes] undrafted [last summer] and makes the most of it.”
The Celtics exercised their $2.1MM club option on Sam Hauser‘s contract but Hauser could be a cap casualty next offseason, Brian Robb of MassLive.com speculates. Hauser’s next contract will be significantly larger, so the Celtics’ efforts to re-sign him next summer could hinge on whether they move a big salary.
Second-round pick Jamal Shead exemplifies the Raptors‘ commitment to getting better defensively, Eric Koreen of The Athletic writes. Shead has displayed his defensive tenacity during Summer League play. “As you can see in the draft class as well, we’re trying to find as many possible two-way guys that can be — we call them the most important guy,” coach Darko Rajakovic said. “(The) most important guy is the guy who’s got who’s guarding the ball. He makes it easier for everybody else.”

Raptors Announce Several Signings, Including First-Rounder Walter

July 4th, 2024 at 2:36pm CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors have announced a series of signings, confirming in a pair of press releases that they’ve signed second-round picks Jonathan Mogbo and Jamal Shead to standard contracts and undrafted free agent Branden Carlson to a two-way deal. Those agreements were all previously reported.

The team also announced that it has signed first-round pick Ja’Kobe Walter to his rookie scale contract.

The 6’5″ Walter was one of the top recruits in the nation heading into college. He made an immediate impact with the Bears as a freshman in 2023/24, starting all 35 games he played and averaging 14.5 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists while shooting 37.6% from the field and 34.1% from three-point range. He was named Big 12 Freshman of the Year and earned third-team all-conference honors.

As the No. 19 pick in the draft, Walter figures to earn about $3.47MM salary as a rookie and $16.79MM across the entirety of his four-year contract. Those numbers assume he signed for 120% of the rookie scale amount, which almost every player does.

With Walter, Mogbo, and Shead all signed, the Raptors are up to 13 players on guaranteed standard contracts, with Immanuel Quickley and Garrett Temple expected to fill the 14th and 15th roster spots once their deals are official.

The team’s other draftee, No. 57 pick Ulrich Chomche, is considered likely to end up on a two-way deal, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. However, the team is still waiting to officially acquire Chomche and can’t complete that signing yet.

Raptors Signing Jamal Shead To Three-Year Deal

July 4th, 2024 at 1:34pm CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors are signing second-round pick Jamal Shead to a three-year, $6.11MM contract, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). That’s the maximum amount permitted under the second-round pick exception for a three-year deal.

Shead, who turned 22 in June, spent all four of his college seasons at the University of Houston, serving as the Cougars’ starting point guard for the past three seasons. In 2023/24, he averaged 12.9 points, 6.3 assists, 3.7 rebounds, and 2.2 steals in 31.1 minutes per game (37 contests).

Shead’s shooting line last season was a modest .409/.309/.779, which is about in line with his career college numbers. However, he’s considered a strong defender, having won this year’s Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year award.

The Raptors selected Shead using the No. 45 pick they acquired in their trade with the Kings last week.

Reporting on draft night indicated that Shead received interest from more than a dozen teams hoping to sign him to a two-way contract, but was assured of getting a guaranteed salary from Toronto. His contract – which begins at $1.86MM – will be guaranteed for the first two seasons, per Charania, with a third-year team option. It’s the same deal that fellow second-rounder Jonathan Mogbo is signing with the Raptors.

Kings Trade Davion Mitchell, Sasha Vezenkov To Raptors

June 28th, 2024 at 2:36pm CST by Luke Adams

JUNE 28: The trade is official, the Raptors announced in a press release, confirming the details outlined below. Toronto used the No. 45 pick to select Houston Cougars guard Jamal Shead on Thursday.

“This trade provides us with a mix of young and veteran players, as well as future flexibility and draft assets, as we continue our quest to win, and so we’re pleased to welcome Davion, Sasha and Jamal to the Raptors and to Toronto,” Raptors general manager Bobby Webster said in a statement. “We thank Jalen for his contributions, and we wish him all the best in the future.”

Because the trade was completed before the new league year began, Toronto completed it using salary-matching and the Siakam trade exception (as explained below) rather than using cap room, which is a signal that they intend to operate over the cap this offseason.

JUNE 27: The Kings have agreed to trade guard Davion Mitchell and forward Sasha Vezenkov to the Raptors, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). Toronto is also receiving the No. 45 pick in tonight’s draft, per Wojnarowski (Twitter link), as well as Portland’s 2025 second-round pick, according to Sean Cunningham of FOX 40 Sacramento (Twitter link).

Sacramento will acquire forward Jalen McDaniels from Toronto in the swap, Wojnarowski adds (via Twitter).

The ninth overall pick in the 2021 draft, Mitchell averaged 11.5 points per game as a rookie but is primarily known as a defensive specialist. In 2023/24, he averaged 5.3 points and 1.9 assists in 15.3 minutes per game across 72 appearances for the Kings, almost exclusively in a reserve role.

Keon Ellis‘ emergence last season and the arrival of No. 13 pick Devin Carter created a crowded backcourt picture in Sacramento and it appears Mitchell will be the odd man out.

Vezenkov, the 2022/23 EuroLeague MVP, was selected 57th overall in the 2017 draft but didn’t make the move to the NBA until last summer, when he signed a three-year, $20MM contract with the Kings. It was an up-and-down NBA rookie year for the 28-year-old, who converted 37.5% of his three-point tries but averaged just 12.2 minutes per game in 42 contests, contributing 5.4 PPG and 2.3 RPG.

A series of June reports suggested that a trade involving Vezenkov was a possibility for the Kings, who projected to be up against the luxury tax after agreeing to re-sign Malik Monk to a four-year, $78MM contract. As cap expert Yossi Gozlan tweets, swapping out Vezenkov’s $6.66MM salary and Mitchell’s $6.45MM cap hit for McDaniels’ incoming $4.74MM salary will give Sacramento about $7MM in spending flexibility below the tax heading into free agency.

The move will also open up a spot on the Kings’ 15-man roster and should generate a pair of trade exceptions for Sacramento, including one worth Vezenkov’s salary ($6.66MM).

McDaniels had a poor season in Toronto in 2023/24, averaging just 3.4 PPG on .344/.169/.730 shooting in 50 games (10.8 MPG). But the athletic 6’9″ wing is only one year removed from scoring a career-high 9.4 PPG, and he had a career shooting line of .465/.345/.784 prior to last season.

As for the Raptors, they’ll take on some extra salary for 2024/25 but neither Mitchell nor Vezenkov is owed guaranteed money beyond next season, and both players could vie for rotation minutes if they remain on the roster. Mitchell is extension-eligible this offseason before potentially reaching restricted free agency in 2025, while Vezenkov’s deal includes a $6.98MM team option for 2025/26.

Toronto now controls the No. 31 and No. 45 picks on Thursday after selecting Baylor’s Ja’Kobe Walter at No. 19 on Wednesday.

The Raptors have multiple options for how to complete the deal. If they intend to operate over the cap, they could use McDaniels’ outgoing salary to match Vezenkov’s incoming figure, then take Mitchell’s salary into a $10MM+ trade exception they created in January’s Pascal Siakam deal. If they plan to operate under the cap, they’ll simply absorb the two incoming salaries using their room. Taking the former route would hard-cap them at the first tax apron for 2024/25.

Raptors Notes: Mogbo, Quickley, Shead, Chomche

June 28th, 2024 at 1:54pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Raptors selected San Francisco’s Jonathan Mogbo with the first pick in the second round because they like his game, but it didn’t hurt that he was a childhood friend of Scottie Barnes, writes Josh Lewenberg of TSN. The former AAU teammates grew up together in Florida and still train together during the offseason. General manager Bobby Webster said the team wasn’t aware of their friendship – which dates back to the fourth grade – when it started scouting Mogbo.

“Around the league a lot of guys grow up playing with each other, and I think those relationships are fun to see from afar, but you can probably imagine the basketball [piece] has to work and we have to like him as a player,” Webster said. “By doing that it creates a basis for that relationship to be fun, and I’m sure they enjoy it, but he has to fit as a basketball player first.”

Mogbo is only 6’6″, but he was used as a big man in college because of his 7’2″ wingspan. He’s considered a potentially elite defender with a questionable shot, but the Raptors are impressed by his versatility and believe he can adjust to a wing role in the NBA.

“It probably feels like a bit more of a Raptors pick,” Webster added. “An athletic wing who can do a little bit of everything. There’s probably some development curve for him, shooting-wise. But I think, physically, [he has an] NBA body… He can really run, can really jump. So that felt like us; the makings of a two-way Raptors wing.”

There’s more from Toronto:

There may be some “sticker shock” regarding Immanuel Quickley‘s new five-year, $175MM contract, but it should wind up being an average salary for a starting NBA point guard, contends Eric Koreen of The Athletic. Koreen points out that 11 point guards will already earn more than Quickley next season, and Jamal Murray, Jalen Brunson, De’Aaron Fox and Derrick White may surpass him soon. Koreen adds that Quickley will get 8% annual raises while the salary cap is expected to rise by 10% each year, so the new contract will steadily become less burdensome.
Although they opted to keep the 31st pick, the Raptors’ front office got plenty of phone calls between Wednesday night and Thursday afternoon, Koreen states in a separate story. Webster is among several executives who prefer the new draft format with the first and second rounds on separate days. “There’s a little interesting dynamic in the late first, early second, and that’s what we’ve kind of found with 31,” he said. “In some ways teams would almost prefer the early seconds. They cost a little bit less (against) the tax.”
Toronto appears to have promised a guaranteed contract to Houston guard Jamal Shead, who was selected with the 45th pick. Sources tell Kelly Iko of The Athletic that the NCAA’s Defensive Player of the Year turned down more than a dozen two-way offers before getting guaranteed money from the Raptors (Twitter link).
Toronto paid $1MM to acquire the 57th pick from Memphis, sources tell Michael Grange of Sportsnet (Twitter link). It was used to select Cameroon center Ulrich Chomche, making him the first player ever drafted from the NBA Academy Africa, which Raptors executive Masai Ujiri helped to develop.

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