DeMarre Carroll remembers the moment he took a liking to Raptors coach Dwane Casey.

The Atlanta Hawks were playing the Raptors, and Carroll found himself near the baseline checking Toronto shooting guard DeMar DeRozan — a prime chance for some trash talk.

But soon after the gritty wingman let rip on DeRozan, he noticed coach Casey getting fired up at the Toronto bench, using the occasion to rally his troops against the Hawks.

Carroll was impressed.

And now that he’s officially a Toronto Raptor himself, having been welcomed Thursday at a well-attended press conference in the foyer of the Air Canada Centre, the six-foot-eight defensive specialist is looking forward to playing under Casey.

“When you play with a coach like that — who gets behind players — that’s a coach that’s blue collar and bleeds the same blood that I do,” Carroll said moments after he was introduced as a Raptor for the first time.

“Now I’ve got my opportunity here, and I’m going to take advantage.”

The 28-year-old from Birmingham, Ala., brings six years of NBA experience to Toronto, having garnered a reputation as a strong defensive player and threat on the long ball, especially during his tenure with the Hawks.

Speaking Thursday before an audience of reporters and Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment staff, Carroll’s voice faltered when he talked about the obstacles in his past. He was shot in the ankle at a Missouri nightclub when he was 20 and was playing in college. He lost a brother when he was young, and was diagnosed with liver disease just weeks before the 2009 draft, when Carroll was selected 29th overall.

“They look at me as a true part of this team. It means a lot. I don’t take nothing for granted. Every time I step on the court I play my hardest, because this game is never promised to you,” Carroll said, who is resurrecting the well-loved nickname, the Junkyard Dog. “To put the city of Toronto across my chest and go out and represent you all — I’m going to do everything I can to help this team.”

Raptors general manager Masai Ujiri said the team started courting Carroll as soon as he was up for free agency. His dynamism as a player, ability to play on the wing or small forward, and his highly-touted “blue collar” work ethic were huge selling points, Ujiri said.

Carroll added that the prospect of joining a lineup with DeRozan and Kyle Lowry made him “drool at the mouth.”

Now all he has to do is wrest the No. 5 away from rookie Bruno Caboclo — a foregone conclusion, really — and have a sit-down with Drake.

“I’m pretty sure we’ll be in touch,” Carroll said. “Hopefully he’ll put me in a song like he did Lou Will . . . a junkyard dog song.”

DeMarre Carroll

Wingspan: Six-foot-10

College: Missouri

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2014-15 stats: 12.6 ppg, 1.7 apg, 5.3 rpg

“When I was in elementary school, middle school, I wasn’t the brightest kid in the class. But I did all the extra credit, I did all my homework, and I reached the same goal as the smartest person in the class. And I’m the same on the basketball court ... I’ve always believed that hard work is a talent.”

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