Allen Graves' Role with Toronto Raptors Becomes Clear After NBA Summer League

With the NBA Summer League all but over, one thing is abundantly clear for the Toronto Raptors. Allen Graves may have been the best possible pick general manager Bobby Webster could have selected at No. 19. 

Many around the league criticized the Raptors’ head of basketball operations for not addressing the need at point guard or center in the first round. Labaon Philon Jr., Chris Cenac Jr., and Jayden Quaintance were all available, but Toronto went with the Santa Clara forward to further crowd the position group.

After seeing him play against NBA competition, there’s no doubt that he will be in the regular rotation. Not only that, but his role may already be solidified without even seeing him with the full team. He dominated as a role player with the Summer League team, and now set to come off the bench, he will have free reign to help the offense flow for the second group.

In Summer League, Graves was expected to be the star of the team and he delivered. He was drafted to be another defensive asset off the bench, while being able to hit open shots and make winning plays. However, he proved that he is capable of facilitating offense both for his own and his teammates; very similar to superstar teammate Scottie Barnes.

He may be the perfect player to have because he can play in all of the minutes that Barnes doesn’t. The 6-foot-9, 225-pound forward won’t be tasked with all ball-handling duties because of backup point guard Jamal Shead. The third-year guard proved himself last season as a nice secondary playmaker when Immanuel Quickley was out due to injury to end the season.

With Shead and Graves controlling the offense, there should be a significant improvement in the bench scoring, with Ja’Kobe Walter, Kyle Anderson, and Collin Murray-Boyles as supporting options off the ball. Not to mention, the defensive impact from the bench will clearly see a drop due to the incredible efforts of Barnes and two-time Defensive Player of the Year Kawhi Leonard, assuming the trade goes through. But, that doesn’t mean the bench will be poor defensively, they should be able to wear out opposing benches in time for the starters to come back in to take over the scoring load. 

Obviously, Graves still has to prove himself on a real NBA court. He has done an excellent job in interviews throughout this summer, then backed up his play in Summer League. Now, the next step is to continue to progress as a superstar in his role, and make a real impact on winning in the regular season.