New Raptors trade acquisition Brandon Ingram remains “at least a month” away from making his debut for Toronto, Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. As the Raptors prepare to incorporate their new star forward, Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca unpacks five critical areas that will help determine Ingram’s fit with his new club.
Murphy speculates as to how Ingram and fellow All-Star Raptors forward Scottie Barnes will mesh in pick-and-roll actions, what Ingram’s shot profile will look like, how Ingram’s play-making will impact Toronto, and more.
In the view of Eric Koreen of The Athletic, figuring out how best to integrate Ingram into his offense will be a defining factor of head coach Darko Rajakovic‘s tenure in Toronto.
“I think there’s going to be a lot of work that we need to put in,” Rajakovic told Koreen on Saturday. “(Ingram) is very open. He’s very willing to accept what this team is doing. And he already started using his voice with the team and talking in the film sessions. He’s opening up, which is great. I really respect that.”
Ingram has only been healthy for 18 games this season. When available, he’s putting up big numbers. The 27-year-old is averaging 22.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per night, with a shooting line of .465/.374/.850.
“All of us, we want the same thing,” Rajakovic said. “We want to win. And winning demands certain things. I think he will embrace that without any problem — ball movement and body moment. I think he’s a very, very unselfish player. I think that he’s a player that can see the court really well. And I think that’s going to be the driving force for us when we get him on the court.”
There’s more out of Toronto:
- In a separate Sportsnet.ca story, Murphy takes a look at the Raptors’ salary cap setup heading into the future in the wake of Ingram’s extension and recently promoted forward Jamison Battle’s three-year standard deal. Because Ingram opted to waive his trade bonus and Toronto offloaded some other salaries, the team was able to accommodate Battle without going into tax territory.
- Ingram inked a three-year, $120MM contract extension upon being dealt to the Raptors. As Koreen observes in another story, the significant cap hits on that deal going forward could compel Toronto’s front office to make some difficult choices about its other personnel. Koreen notes that the Raptors will now owe an estimated $175.4MM in guaranteed money to just 10 players next year — four shy of the required minimum. That figure doesn’t account for the team’s projected lottery pick.
- In case you missed it, Ingram’s contract extension will be paid out in an ascending structure, with 5% annual raises.