Toronto Raptors Summer League preview: Everything you need to know
Believe it or not, Toronto Raptors basketball is back.
Summer League is officially here, and Toronto is bringing an experienced and talented roster down to Las Vegas, Nevada. This year marks the Raptors’ 17th appearance at the tournament, following a 2-3 record in 2024, while the team holds an overall mark of 42-39 (.519) at the event.
Here is everything you need to know and what to watch out for with the Toronto Raptors at Summer League.
Schedule and format
Overall, the tournament will take place from July 10-20 at the Thomas & Mack Center and Pavilion venues on the campus of the University of Nevada.
All 30 NBA teams will play at least five games, with the first four commencing between July 10 and July 17. Following that, the top four teams will advance to participate in the playoffs, beginning with the semifinals on July 19 and the championship on July 20. The teams that do not advance to the four-team playoff will play a fifth game on either one of the final three days of the competition.
The Raptors first four games are as follows:
| Date | Opponent | Time (PT / ET) | Venue |
| Friday, July 11 | Chicago Bulls | 5 p.m. / 8 p.m. | Pavilion |
| Sunday, July 13 | Orlando Magic | 3 p.m. / 6 p.m. | Thomas & Mack |
| Tuesday, July 15 | Denver Nuggets | 5 p.m. / 8 p.m. | Pavilion |
| Thursday, July 17 | Golden State Warriors | 7 p.m. / 10 p.m. | Pavilion |
Roster
The Raptors boast arguably their most talented and certainly most connected team in years heading to Vegas, as with the continuity and skill level of this roster, a championship should be attainable. 16 players are featured, including six rookies, five sophomores, and five other players in some form or fashion, as six players return from last year’s summer squad.
The team will be coached by James Wade, who his entering his third year as an assistant on head coach Darko Rajakovic’s staff after being the general manager and head coach for the Chicago Sky in the WNBA.
Let’s break down the roster.
The rookies:
Collin Murray-Boyles
Of course, the headliner of the squad is ninth overall pick Collin Murray-Boyles.
The 20-year-old averaged 16.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.3 blocks while shooting 58.6 per cent from the field, 26.5 per cent from three, and 70.7 per cent from the free throw line last season with South Carolina.
Viewed as one of the best defenders in the 2025 draft class with his near 7-foot-1 wingspan, the Gamecocks had a +18.3 NET rating and a 105.7 defensive rating with Murray-Boyles on, and a 117.8 defensive rating with him off (97th percentile).
While a non-shooter (9-for-39 [23.1 per cent] across two years in college), Murray-Boyles showed a variety of ways to contribute and put the ball in the basket in the NCAA. The 6-foot-7 forward shot 66.9 per cent (168-of-251) at the rim, 71.2 per cent (37-of-52) as a cutter, and 50.9 per cent (27-of-53) as a pick-and-roll, roll man.
It will be interesting to see what Wade and the rest of the coaching staff decide to do with Murray-Boyles’ role, whether he’s primarily at centre, at the four, on the wing, and just how much he plays with other front-court players alongside him, like Jonathan Mogbo and Ulrich Chomche.
Alijah Martin
39th overall pick Martin rounds out the drafted rookies featured on the team, and by all accounts, he’ll fit right in.
In his last three years at Florida Atlantic, plus his one season at Florida, he averaged nearly 14 points, over five rebounds, nearly two assists, and 1.4 steals. Efficiency-wise, he shot nearly 37 per cent from distance on six attempts per game, over 44 per cent from the field and over 76 per cent from the free throw line.
Over those four years, the 23-year-old was a winner, his teams had an astounding 115-32 record, while helping lead the Owls to a Final Four appearance, then, of course, being a part of the national championship-winning Gators this past season.
It’s hard to see Martin starting this summer, given all the talent, but it’s not hard to see him making an impact, especially defensively and in transition. What Martin can do on the ball offensively and what the 3-point shot looks like are some things to keep an eye on.
Chucky Hepburn
Hepburn signed a two-way contract as an undrafted free agent and should be one of the leaders on the Raptors 905 this season.
The 22-year-old spent three years at Wisconsin before spending his final collegiate season at Louisville, where he broke out.
With the Cardinals, Hepburn averaged career-highs across the board, including points (16.4), assists (5.8), rebounds (3.5), steals (2.4), field goal percentage (43.2), and free throw percentage (84.4).
His 2.4 steals per game led the American Athletic Conference (ACC) and won the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year award.
Hepburn is small, measuring in at just over six feet and a half without shoes, 189 pounds with a near 6-foot-5 wingspan, but he brings experience and a defensive pedigree with more on-ball juice than you would think.
Cliff Omoruyi
After working out for the Raptors in the pre-draft process and reportedly signing an Exhibit 10 contract with Toronto, Omoruyi is a prime candidate for the Raptors 905.
In his one and only season with the Alabama Crimson Tide last year, Omoruyi averaged 7.9 points, 6.5 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.4 steals, and 1.1 blocks, while shooting a Southeastern Conference (SEC) leading 73.9 per cent from inside the arc across 37 games.
The 23-year-old spent four years at Rutgers before transferring to Alabama, averaging 10.3 points, 7.7 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 1.8 blocks, and 0.6 steals while shooting 54.9 per cent from the field across 121 games. Omoruyi also led the Big Ten in swats in his final season at Rutgers, averaging an astounding 2.9 per game.
Omoruyi is a player in a position of need for the Raptors and has the potential to pop defensively with his freakish 7-foot-6 wingspan and rim protection.
Tyson Degenhart
Like Omoruyi, Degenhart reportedly signed an Exhibit 10 contract and has a leg up to join the 905.
The 6-foot-7, 235-pound forward played four years at Boise State and improved every year. Across his 138 collegiate games, Degenhart started 132 of them, averaging 14.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.1 stocks.
Efficiency-wise, he had very solid splits, averaging 51.8 per cent from the field, 35.4 per cent from distance, and 77.6 per cent from the free throw line.
The 22-year-old received three straight Mountain West First-Team selections and offers an interesting blend of size and shooting.
Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones
The Wellington, New Zealand native is the only rookie on the team to be on a pure Summer League deal.
The 6-foot-6 forward spent his first three seasons of eligibility at the Division II level, claiming two PACWest All-Second Team honours and one PACWest All-First Team honour, before spending the previous two seasons at UC San Diego.
In the 24-year-old’s first season in the Big West, Tait-Jones claimed the Newcomer of the Year award before earning Big West Player of the Year honours last season after averaging an efficient (57.6 per cent) 19.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.2 steals.
How much real run he will get this summer with a deep roster is unknown, but the rookie knows how to get a bucket.
The sophomores:
Ja‘Kobe Walter
The favourite to lead the team in scoring, Walter has the skillset and talent to be one of the best scorers at the tournament as a whole.
After a stop-and-start rookie season featuring multiple injuries, including one that held him out of training camp, a full offseason for Walter to develop is great news.
A step up offensively is something surely the Raptors brass and fans alike will want to see, after averaging 8.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists on 40.5 per cent, 34.9 per cent, and 79.5 per cent splits in his debut season.
He should be a leader on this team on both ends of the floor, and if all goes well, he should be shut down before this thing ends, proving he’s too good for it.
Jamal Shead
Speaking of leaders, this is the exact situation for Jamal Shead to take the reins of the team.
The almost 23-year-old is coming off a more than solid rookie season where he averaged 7.1 points and 4.2 assists on 40.5 per cent, 32.3 per cent, 76.8 per cent shooting splits.
If all goes well, Shead won’t play in every game because he’s just too good like Walter, and seeing him dominate at the point of attack while being a force at the point guard spot should almost be expected given his age, talent, and experience.
Jonathan Mogbo
Another part of this standout 2024 draft class for Toronto, Mogbo’s game is one of the more interesting to view after an up-and-down rookie season.
The 6-foot-7 forward played in 63 games last season for the big club, putting up 6.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.4 stocks while spending time as a small-ball five.
Defensively, the 23-year-old should do very well, given he looked the part on that end of the floor during the later stages of last year’s regular season.
The biggest thing for Mogbo will be asserting his dominance around the rim offensively more often against this level of competition, something he also started to put together towards the end of the year.
Overall, his play on defence and the West Palm Beach, Florida native’s athleticism should be noticeable.
Jamison Battle
Everyone and their mother knows Battle can shoot, hitting at a 40.5 per cent clip from distance across 59 games for the Raptors last season. It’s how good the 6-foot-7, 220-pound wing does everything else against this competition that’s intriguing.
Seeing what he can do as a defender and with more on-ball responsibility will be fascinating to see after averaging 7.1 points and 2.7 rebounds with Toronto last season.
Battle started his Raptors career with a Summer League deal, now he returns to Las Vegas on a standard contract and one of the best players on the squad.
Ulrich Chomche
Chomche was making promising headway last season before suffering a proximal MCL tear in his right knee in mid-February, ending his season. The plan was always for the 6-foot-11 centre to return for summer skirmish, and nothing, as of yet, has been said about any sort of minute restrictions.
With the 905 last season, Chomche averaged 7.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks while shooting 54.4 percent from the field across 33 games.
Chomche also appeared in seven games for the Raptors themselves, including seeing the most action in his career (12 minutes) in his most recent matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers, matching up with fellow Cameroonian and former Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid.
It will be very intriguing to see how the youngest player under an NBA contract last season performs after recovering from an injury, as defensively, he was one of the best in the G League last season.
How the 19-year-old looks offensively is something to take note of.
Everyone else:
AJ Lawson
Lawson and Colin Castleton’s contract situation and performances in Summer League will be part of the decision-making process on whether they make the final roster.
The Brampton, Ontario native has a non-guaranteed contract, and with the Raptors right along the tax, Lawson could be a cap casualty.
Given his age and experience, the almost 25-year-old should be one of the best players on the University of Nevada campus after playing 26 games for Toronto last season and averaging 9.1 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.2 assists.
His rim pressure and 3-point shooting, although streaky, are more than welcome and needed in Toronto, but the defence and efficiency have to come around.
Colin Castleton
Like Lawson, Castleton may be entering Summer League on the outside looking in with a non-guaranteed contract.
He came, he left, and then he came back after joining the rival Philadelphia 76ers last season, as the 25-year-old played for three NBA teams and three G League teams across two different countries this past season.
With the Raptors, however, the 6-foot-11 big averaged 7.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.2 stocks while shooting 50.0 per cent from the field, 25.0 (2-for-8) per cent from distance, and 72.2 per cent from the free throw line across 11 games.
The Raptors need help at the big position, but given his contract situation with no guaranteed money and Toronto’s tax conundrum, he is one of the cleanest cuts financially.
Quincy Guerrier
While technically a sophomore, Querrier is yet to play in an NBA contest. Guerrier’s role was constantly changing with the 905 last season, starting in 18 games for the club, then being completely out of the rotation when multiple assignment players were down in Mississauga.
Despite all that, the Montreal, Quebec native produced when he was on the court, averaging 10.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1.0 stocks across 40 games. Efficiency-wise, the 26-year-old shot 47.6 per cent from the field, 28.2 per cent from distance, and 63.8 per cent from the free throw line.
His athleticism, physicality, rebounding, length with his 7-foot wingspan, and defensive versatility offer enough for him to stick around while the rest of his offensive game develops.
Tyreke Key
Like Guerrier, it bodes well for Key’s chances to remain with the 905 after joining Toronto for Summer League. The 26-year-old showed flashes with the junior Raps last season while making 10 starts as a “three and D” off guard.
Across 42 games, Key averaged 6.8 points, 1.5 assists, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.0 stocks while shooting 47.4 per cent from the field, 39.5 per cent from 3-point territory, and 70.3 per cent from the free throw line.
Similar to Guerrier, the 6-foot-2, 207-pound guard could be in for a bigger role in his second year in Mississauga under 905 head coach Drew Jones.
Jarkel Joiner
Last but certainly not least is Joiner, who has spent the last two seasons in the G League.
Across 94 games over his two seasons with the College Park Skyhawks (Atlanta Hawks G League affiliate), the 26-year-old averaged 10.6 points, 3.6 assists, 3.1 rebounds, and 0.7 steals while shooting 42.6 per cent from the field, 32.6 per cent from distance, and 75.9 from the charity stripe.
Joiner is a small and quick guard who could be another option for the 905, but just how many minutes he gets to show off what he has in Vegas is up in the air.
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