With the 13th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, the Toronto Raptors selected Kansas shooting guard/small forward Gradey Dick. Coming off a disappointing year, the team has several improvements to make ahead of the 2023-34 season. With the addition of the 19-year-old, they addressed one area that desperately needed an upgrade.
What Impact Will Gradey Dick Have With The Toronto Raptors?
Background
In his lone season at Kansas, Dick averaged 14.1 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 1.7 APG, and 1.4 SPG. The freshman started all 36 games and emerged as one of the top shooters in the draft. He shot an efficient 44% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc. His scoring is his greatest strength, and he has the potential to become a three-level threat. He’s a comfortable shooter with great range, even setting a record at Kansas for hitting 83 three-pointers in a season.
On top of that, the sharpshooter is also a good passer and floor spacer who constantly works to get open by cutting and moving. He’s unselfish with the ball and is a quick decision-maker with a low turnover rate, averaging 1.3 per game. Defensively, he excels at anticipating plays and picking off passes. He’s also a solid rebounder and on-ball guard.
However, Dick’s weaknesses are his driving, playmaking, and defensive consistency. His lack of size, speed, strength, and handles compromise his ability to find lanes and efficiency in the paint. Sometimes he struggled to finish through contact when challenged by a defender near the rim. He’s not known for his facilitating abilities and doesn’t create many shots for his teammates. Finally, he tends to fall behind when guarding quicker opponents and fails to contest most shots effectively.
Raptors 2022-23 Season Struggles
The Raptors finished ninth in the East with a 41-41 record. The Chicago Bulls eliminated them from the Play-In Tournament after they blew a 19-point lead. In the league, they ranked 28th in 3P% (33.5), 27th in FG% (45.9), and 24th in PPG (112.9).
Their disappointing year was filled with struggles and inconsistency. Shooting was one of their biggest issues, and they were highly inefficient from long range. Toronto’s mid-range, free-throw, and interior scoring were almost as bad. Too many times, their offense consisted of prolonged droughts or passing around the ball and being forced to take a low-quality shot before the clock ran out. On the other end, they were unable to find their defensive identity. And their rim and paint protection was dreadful (mainly before the acquisition of Jakob Poeltl). Overall, they struggled to contest shots and gave up numerous open looks.
How Gradey Dick Impacts the Team
The six-foot-eight wing brings elite shooting to a Raptors squad that had trouble taking the lid off the basket. One of their top off-season priorities is to fill their team with reliable scorers who can hit shots from long range and the perimeter, and they found one at the draft. Especially with Fred VanVleet signing with the Houston Rockets, Toronto lost one of their best three-point shooters. However, Dick is an excellent replacement. He can convert difficult attempts at a high rate and is often unbothered by closeouts. Overall, his efficiency and skill should translate nicely to the NBA. He has an excellent feel for the game offensively and is a confident shooter who can score in various ways from virtually anywhere on the court. The addition of a consistent scorer also offers Toronto’s core a break.
His sharpshooting should attract defenders, allowing scorers like Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Gary Trent Jr., and Scottie Barnes to get open looks. Here, Dick has an opportunity to improve his playmaking skills. He’ll also be a valuable floor spacer as he excels in an off-ball role. With Siakam and Barnes’ passing and court vision, they should be able to create looks for Dick to get three-point opportunities.
While he isn’t known for his defensive abilities, Dick’s deficiencies can be covered by defenders like Anunoby and Poeltl. Still, he does offer some help on defense with his awareness and ability to read passing lanes. The Raptors now have multiple players who excel at generating deflections, and they averaged a league-best 18 per game last season.
Time will tell how the 13th pick will pan out for Toronto. Nevertheless, they picked up a sharpshooter who addresses a significant concern that has plagued them for the past few seasons.
