Five Raptors to keep tabs on at NBA Summer League

The Raptors selected Dewan Hernandez 59th overall at the NBA Draft.

The Toronto Raptors will begin the defence of their champion status this weekend when the NBA’s Las Vegas Summer League tips off Friday night.

Summer League is generally an early training ground for rookies and can be a breakout ground for prospective NBA players. Fred VanVleet made a name for himself at summer league, while OG Anunoby was a standout in Vegas last year coming off a surprisingly effective rookie campaign in 2018.

This year, the Raptors’ roster will feature three players from last year’s title team, their lone 2019 draft pick, a trio of Canadians and an intriguing mix of talent. Here’s a closer look at some players to keep an eye on at summer league:

Chris Boucher, F

Consider Montreal’s Chris Boucher an overqualified summer-leaguer.

The Raptors big man and recently crowned NBA champ only appeared in about three minutes of action during the playoffs, but is fresh off a dominant season in the G League starring for Toronto’s affiliate the Raptors 905.

Boucher was named 2019 G-League MVP and Defensive Player of the Year after posting absurd averages of 27.7 points, 11.4 rebounds and 4.1 blocks per game in 28 appearances — while also making over two three-pointers per game for good measure.

He appeared far more mortal during his time with the Raptors in the NBA, but still managed to record a block per game despite averaging just six minutes of action.

It remains to be seen whether the 26-year-old forward will come anywhere close to matching his G-League production at the NBA level, but here’s betting the thin-framed, seven-footer dominates against the competition in Vegas next week.

Boucher joins wing Malcolm Miller and guard Jordan Lloyd as three players on the summer league roster who were on the 2019 champion Raptors roster.

Dewan Hernandez, C

The Raptors’ lone draft pick this year, the team selected Hernandez at 59th overall with the second-last pick of the draft. While he was a long-shot to be drafted, in typical fashion of the Masai Ujiri regime, the team has been said to have been scouting the 22-year-old, six-foot-eleven centre for years.

Hernandez — who changed his last named from “Huell” two years ago — is a former McDonald’s All-American who had to forgo his last college season at Miami after he hired an agent for the 2018 draft but did not get selected by a team.

A mobile, athletic big man, Hernandez likes to attack the hoop and averaged 11.4 points on 57 per cent shooting as a sophomore starter with the Hurricanes.

For more on Hernandez click here.

Duane Notice, G

A former South Carolina standout in college and Greater Toronto Area high school star, Notice spent last season in the G League with the Raptors 905 where he averaged ten points and a steal per game while shooting nearly 40 per cent from beyond the arc.

A high-character guy with experience playing overseas and represented Canada internationally, Notice will get an opportunity to showcase his game for NBA scouts after a successful season in Mississauga, Ont.

Notice is one of three Canadians included on the Raptors’ summer league roster, joining Boucher and undrafted Iowa State guard Lindell Wigginton, who is looking to become the first player from Nova Scotia to make the NBA.

Sagaba Konate, C

After Konate left West Virginia to declare for the draft in May following his junior season, the local news called it a “huge mistake”, and the imposing six-foot-eight, 250-pound centre will obviously be looking to prove otherwise with the Raptors in Vegas.

While his game remains unrefined, Konate brings one elite skill to the table: shot-blocking, where his sturdy frame and conductor-like timing on his hops have made him one of college basketball’s most feared rim protectors.

The Bamako, Mali native blocked 2.4 shots per game across his three collegiate seasons, which included two March Madness trips to the Sweet Sixteen. As a sophomore in 2017-18 he led the NCAA with 3.2 blocks per game and last season he averaged 2.8 blocks per game, but was sidelined for all but nine games due to a knee injury.

Jamal Franklin, G

Franklin was a second-round pick of the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2013 draft, but couldn’t stick in the NBA and has spent the past three seasons playing in the Chinese Basketball Association.

Although his defensive potential is a big reason he was drafted, Franklin notably notched the first 60-point triple-double in CBA history, going for 61 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists in 2016 while playing for Shanxi Zhongyu.

As a freshman at San Diego State, Franklin was a teammate of Kawhi Leonard, so it may not be a coincidence that it’s the Raptors who are giving him a shot to audition in front of an audience of NBA coaches and scouts in Las Vegas.

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