With the 19th Pick, the Raptors select Ja'Kobe Walter!

[Duffman100]

It's starting to feel around 2016/2017.

Minus the 50 wins

we having too much players who are naturally SG/SFss:
gradey dick, RJ, Walter, Ochai, and etc

but none of them are super good

Yet.

24, 24, 20 and 20 years old.

I think Dick clearly has the highest ceiling and could be something.

[Johnston]

I really liked what I saw last night from JKW. Would have never thought that was his first NBA game. I excited to see how he develops. He really passed the eye test for me.

[Psubs]

I really liked what I saw last night from JKW. Would have never thought that was his first NBA game. I excited to see how he develops. He really passed the eye test for me.

I guess he's been practicing with the team and the new bench mob all look like they belong.

[PhilBlackson]

It's starting to feel around 2016/2017.

Minus the 50 wins

we having too much players who are naturally SG/SFss:
gradey dick, RJ, Walter, Ochai, and etc

but none of them are super good

I don't think any of them are naturally SFs at all, imo every one of them are SGs that just do different things on the court. They're just forced to play SF because ironically we don't have a natural SF on the roster since we traded away OG (who is more of the prototypical SF). It's fine if they're doing patch work but none of them should be the full-time SF as ideally you'd like a player with more length to handle the bigger SFs over 6'8 which there are actually a lot of in the league.

While I don't think any of them are superstars in the making, I think Gradey (esp offensively) and JaKobe have the potential to be some of the better SGs in the league (again I don't mean one of the elite) but amongst the better starting SGs, sure they do. But we do ideally need someone who's more of a natural SF (*ahem Ace) to fill that hole (no Diddy) in the lineup.

[GoRapstheoriginal]

Much more interested to see How he fares tonight on the 2nd night of the back to back.

If he will still have the energy & compete level & the tenacity on D#.
And if he will get 20 plus mins again from Darko.
Stay tuned! I'm excited!

[Tha Cynic]

He had a bit of RJ Barrett in the way he competed. Wait till that shot starts dropping. He's one of those guys who isn't afraid and will keeping going at you.

They're kind of exact opposite in the way they attack, RJ looking to finish and Ja'Kobe looking to CREATE CONTACT.

I'm actually talking between shots. As soon as the shot went up, he was looking for a rebound or getting into his stance - things RJ does when he's trying to turn it up a notch. At least for this game his compete level was very high. If he's that type of player regularly, he's going to impress with the way the Raptors have been developing guys.

[mademan]

Liked his activity and liked his defense. Im fairly hopeful for him and think he's a long term rotation piece and possibly a starter which is fine value at 19 in a bad draft

[anotherhomer]

Minus the 50 wins

we having too much players who are naturally SG/SFss:
gradey dick, RJ, Walter, Ochai, and etc

but none of them are super good

Yet.

24, 24, 20 and 20 years old.

I think Dick clearly has the highest ceiling and could be something.

ideally i like to see some consolidation....into a SF or someting

that said, OKC also has the same problem with a bunch of SGs too

[MEDIC]

Walter has some great mentors right now. A supportive coach that simply wants him to not worry about mistakes & play hard & bunch of guards that are aggressive & always in attack mode (RJ, Shead, Gradey, etc)

Really good situation for him to develop.

[Kingsway_fan]

Team really lacks bigs... talented bigs... anyway, at this point it's acquisition of young affordable talent and seeing who emerges... we have already seen one --- Gradey.

[ForeverTFC]

I really liked his activity last night. He looked like he belonged on an NBA court. With that said, I really really hope he can shoot.

[ForeverTFC]

Team really lacks bigs... talented bigs... anyway, at this point it's acquisition of young affordable talent and seeing who emerges... we have already seen one --- Gradey.

Bigs can be had in the trade market/FA if you're willing to pay. Wings are the hardest to find but that's a league wide problem. League is littered with good young guards.

[Basketball_Jones]

I thought he moved very well, his defense was promising. Kind of smallish and he’ll need really good handles to play the way he likes imo. He definitely wants to handle and create and get to the free throw line but it’s not there yet.

[GreatWhiteStiff]

He had a bit of RJ Barrett in the way he competed. Wait till that shot starts dropping. He's one of those guys who isn't afraid and will keeping going at you.

They're kind of exact opposite in the way they attack, RJ looking to finish and Ja'Kobe looking to CREATE CONTACT.

I'm actually talking between shots. As soon as the shot went up, he was looking for a rebound or getting into his stance - things RJ does when he's trying to turn it up a notch. At least for this game his compete level was very high. If he's that type of player regularly, he's going to impress with the way the Raptors have been developing guys.

I mean if we really had all these guys buying in on defence and competing for rebounds and stuff...we might actually be good at those things. But maybe you're right about Ja'Kobe and Barrett, I hope so. I'm all about Team Compete, so I like the attitude!

#EliteFreeThrowMerchant #Prayers

[Indeed]

They're kind of exact opposite in the way they attack, RJ looking to finish and Ja'Kobe looking to CREATE CONTACT.

I'm actually talking between shots. As soon as the shot went up, he was looking for a rebound or getting into his stance - things RJ does when he's trying to turn it up a notch. At least for this game his compete level was very high. If he's that type of player regularly, he's going to impress with the way the Raptors have been developing guys.

I mean if we really had all these guys buying in on defence and competing for rebounds and stuff...we might actually be good at those things. But maybe you're right about Ja'Kobe and Barrett, I hope so. I'm all about Team Compete, so I like the attitude!

#EliteFreeThrowMerchant #Prayers

It will probably be a year or two, as we saw last night both Mogbo and Walter got into foul trouble early. Barrett was also the one guarding LeBron, otherwise, your young players would be fouled out before half time.

Walter still needs to be in the 905, the rotation was a bit slow, like Mogbo in the preseason, not processing quick enough. Positioning was also off a bit.

[KrazyP]

Jakobe's overall game and current strengths/weaknesses make me almost think he's like a Gary Trent Jr clone.

Shooting - Like Trent, making open 3s will be to the key for Walter to carve out an NBA career....hes a good shooter although he hasnt shown it just yet
Ball handling - poor/work in progress
Passing - non existent
Athleticism/Quickness - average which will make him a defensive liability against quicker guards
Length - wingspan will allow him to be somewhat disruptive defensively and maybe help him recover in blow-by situations
Demeanour - serious, focused, no smiles on the court

The one thing Walter has shown already that Trent never did was the ability to get to the line which should work in his favour.

Also, Trent's development completely stagnated over the years.....he's basically the same player today that he was when the Blazers traded him to the Raps years ago. With Walter, if he can make incremental improvements year by year there is some potential upside here for him to become a more versatile scorer.

[MEDIC]

I thought Walter looked quicker, more aggressive & more physical than GTJ.

He doesn't have top tier lateral quickness, but his wingspan is much longer than GTJ (same standing reach as RJ while being 2" shorter). He should be better defensively than GTJ.

He definitely needs some 905 reps to catch up a little, but so far I like his confidence & focus.

He is young. Look at Gradey last year compared to this year.

[Thaddy]

I thought Walter looked quicker, more aggressive & more physical than GTJ.

He doesn't have top tier lateral quickness, but his wingspan is much longer than GTJ (same standing reach as RJ while being 2" shorter). He should be better defensively than GTJ.

He definitely needs some 905 reps to catch up a little, but so far I like his confidence & focus.

He is young. Look at Gradey last year compared to this year.

I would plant him in the GLeague and put a focus on self creation. I don't know why he went from good to terrible at Baylor in that department. If there isn't much there then a 3+D focus would still be enough to justify the pick. The wingspan gives him a higher potential than Dick if his shot holds up.

[Scase]

Havent had a chance to watch the last 2 games, but why did he only get 10min playing and battle got 15+? Darko going for the win over development, or did he look bad?

[Psubs]

Havent had a chance to watch the last 2 games, but why did he only get 10min playing and battle got 15+? Darko going for the win over development, or did he look bad?

It's like the previous game vs Charlotte, Battle went 0 for 2 and then didn't play vs LAL and Walter got 21 mins. Battle was hitting last night 3 for 6 from 3 and had 3 assists with zero turnovers. I think he's trying to develop both at the same time. Bruce Brown may only play a few games to show that he's healthy for a trade.