With the 45th pick, the Raptors select Jamal Shead

[Johnny Bball]

Hah, last night while on the spin cycle I was watching parts of the Portland game on League Pass. It was revealing to see Darko didn't let Shead near the court in crunch time. His fourth quarter minutes have to be restricted from now on.

Let the Big O take those last second 3s.

He's gonna gave to start sitting Battle next. He turned the entire 4th around.

[YogurtProducer]

His entire value comes down to the 3. If he keeps this up, we have reason to be optimistic

[Indeed]

His entire value comes down to the 3. If he keeps this up, we have reason to be optimistic

And pull up 3

[TNRaps4life]

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[junot111]

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Let jamal sing the anthem at the opener.

[right between the eyes]

Jamal really seems mature beyond his years. Also such a good public speaker! Very impressive young man.
Sucks losing Davion but Jamal's ceiling is greater.
I think we found a gem here. Masai did it again!

[Thaddy]

For all the love and praise he gets, Shead isn't someone with a high ceiling. I've seen some people discounting Fears as the pick because of IQ and Shead. Neither of them are top 10 at their position or ever project to be. That should be something everyone should be aware of.

[DreamTeam09]

For all the love and praise he gets, Shead isn't someone with a high ceiling. I've seen some people discounting Fears as the pick because of IQ and Shead. Neither of them are top 10 at their position or ever project to be. That should be something everyone should be aware of.

Fears isn't going to be better than IQ no matter where he gets drafted

[Psubs]

For all the love and praise he gets, Shead isn't someone with a high ceiling. I've seen some people discounting Fears as the pick because of IQ and Shead. Neither of them are top 10 at their position or ever project to be. That should be something everyone should be aware of.

Just look at Jalen Brunson. Even at Dallas winning 2 playoff games with Luka out, the Mavs still didn't think of Brunson that way. The Grizzlies and Rockets didn't look at Lowry like that either.

What if Shead is a more athletic Lowry? Lowry was a sub 30% 3pt shooter until age 23. Shead shot 32% at age 22. Defensively comparable. As early as next season, we might be having a Calderon/Ford type debate between them.

[nikster]

For all the love and praise he gets, Shead isn't someone with a high ceiling. I've seen some people discounting Fears as the pick because of IQ and Shead. Neither of them are top 10 at their position or ever project to be. That should be something everyone should be aware of.

Just look at Jalen Brunson. Even at Dallas winning 2 playoff games with Luka out, the Mavs still didn't think of Brunson that way. The Grizzlies and Rockets didn't look at Lowry like that either.

What if Shead is a more athletic Lowry? Lowry was a sub 30% 3pt shooter until age 23. Shead shot 32% at age 22. Defensively comparable. As early as next season, we might be having a Calderon/Ford type debate between them.

I think the one difference in looking at 3 point percentage from people in different eras is the priority placed on it. When Lowry was drafted the league average attempts were 16 a game.

With 3 point shooting being so much more important now I'd expect we have less players seeing such dramatic jumps in volume and or efficiency

[AkelaLoneWolf]

For all the love and praise he gets, Shead isn't someone with a high ceiling. I've seen some people discounting Fears as the pick because of IQ and Shead. Neither of them are top 10 at their position or ever project to be. That should be something everyone should be aware of.

Guy was the 45th pick. What do you expect? If he can become a reasonable or reliable backup pg who plays good defense and hits the occasional 3 then that’s a home run for us

[XTC]

For all the love and praise he gets, Shead isn't someone with a high ceiling. I've seen some people discounting Fears as the pick because of IQ and Shead. Neither of them are top 10 at their position or ever project to be. That should be something everyone should be aware of.

No one is saying he's a star, but he's athletic, sees the floor well, plays solid defense, and his jumper is improving. His archetype is super easy to project. He's a 3+D point guard, who has shown he has decent vision and passing abilities.

If he becomes a Patrick Beverely with better passing, that's such a steal... I mean if he becomes PatBev in general that's a massive steal.

With that being said, if there's a better player with a higher ceiling, the Raptors will go that route. You never draft for need, it's always BPA unless you have two players with similar ceilings.

[tsherkin]

If he becomes a Patrick Beverely with better passing, that's such a steal... I mean if he becomes PatBev in general that's a massive steal.

Yeah, I mean, he was a 2nd round pick. Getting anything out of him, him being a rotation player, that's all a win for us.

[douggood]

tangent news

Sasha Vezenkov, who spent the 2023/24 season with the Kings, is enjoying a hugely successful return to Europe this season. Vezenkov finished as the runner-up in EuroLeague MVP voting after averaging 20.2 points per game for Olympiacos and has now been named the EuroLeague Playoffs MVP for his performance in the Greek team’s quarterfinal series vs. Real Madrid, according to a press release.

It’s the first time the EuroLeague has named a Playoffs MVP — the award doesn’t encompass the league’s Final Four, which will be played later this month. Vezenkov, who gave up a fully guaranteed $6.7MM salary with the Raptors last summer in order to head back overseas, will be looking to lead Olympiacos to a win over AS Monaco on May 23 in the semifinals and – ultimately – to a EuroLeague championship.

[yellowknifer]

Wish we could have kept him instead of releasing him and he was willing to play here. Could be a good one. Maybe he never wants to play in the NBA?

[bluerap23]

Wish we could have kept him instead of releasing him and he was willing to play here. Could be a good one. Maybe he never wants to play in the NBA?

Wo, scared me. Thought you were talking about Shead going to join a cult

[Psubs]

For all the love and praise he gets, Shead isn't someone with a high ceiling. I've seen some people discounting Fears as the pick because of IQ and Shead. Neither of them are top 10 at their position or ever project to be. That should be something everyone should be aware of.

No one is saying he's a star, but he's athletic, sees the floor well, plays solid defense, and his jumper is improving. His archetype is super easy to project. He's a 3+D point guard, who has shown he has decent vision and passing abilities.

If he becomes a Patrick Beverely with better passing, that's such a steal... I mean if he becomes PatBev in general that's a massive steal.

With that being said, if there's a better player with a higher ceiling, the Raptors will go that route. You never draft for need, it's always BPA unless you have two players with similar ceilings.

Brunson wasn't a player with a high ceiling.

Shead's A/T as a rookie is already 2.7.

In the top 10 draft BPA, afterwards BPA gets murky. Like Miami needed a big so they drafted Ware. Once the draft flattens out, then you go for need.

Like once Liam McNeeley is projected you skip him and go with need.

[djsunyc]

this is my pick for breakout raptor. i think he is going to eat 2nd units alive next season

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[StopitLeo]

this is my pick for breakout raptor. i think he is going to eat 2nd units alive next season

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I'd love for him to breakout so we can trade IQ.

[YogurtProducer]

this is my pick for breakout raptor. i think he is going to eat 2nd units alive next season

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I'd love for him to breakout so we can trade IQ.

Or, and stay with me here for a second, we can have multiple good players.