Toronto Raptors 2016-17 player grades: The youngsters
By Nate Wolf
Delon Wright
One year better but one year older.
This is why teams prefer not to draft 23-year-old prospects. At 25, Wright is already the same age as Cory Joseph, who has four more years of NBA experience. Due to a labral tear suffered in Summer League, Wright played just 446 regular season minutes for Toronto this season, not nearly enough for a player his age.
Toronto Raptors
It’s tough. Kyle Lowry is a top-10 point guard in the entire league, and Joseph is a high-end backup capable of logging big minutes.
That said, Lowry’s midseason wrist injury gave Wright a chance, and he put in okay performances throughout the second half of the year. Offensively, Wright posted a steady 2.26 assist-to-turnover ratio, and at least matched Joseph’s three-point shooting (that isn’t saying much, though).
Defensively, Wright used his 6’5” frame to great effect. He held his marks to 40.3 percent shooting and swiped 2.2 steals per 36 minutes. Wright is atypically reliable on defense for a second-year player, and his solid play on that end is pretty universally recognized as his calling card.
Right now, the young guard is probably good enough to serve as a low-end backup for Lowry. Joseph has a tradable contract that may need to be moved so Toronto can duck the luxury tax. Wright’s improvement over the summer will determine whether Joseph is expendable.