Raptors need to consider free agents from near & far by Thomas Fenn

Delon Wright might be ready for greater responsibilities next season for the Raptors. That’s doubly so if Kyle Lowry moves on.

Delon Wright, injured for much of last season, didn’t have much of an opportunity to display any improved skills when he returned. Our backup point guard entered precisely the same number of games he did as a rookie, 27. He spent considerable time with the successful minor league affiliate, Raptors 905. While his productivity improved, due to nearly twice the playing time with the big team, we feel Delon has more to offer than he’s shown so far.

Though he’s only been a pro for two seasons, Delon is 25 years old. That makes him older than Jonas Valanciunas, Bruno Caboclo, Pascal Siakam, his college teammate Jakob Poeltl, Bebe, Norman Powell….it’s time to give him some room to move.

Wright might be good to go

There’s a lot to like about Delon. He’s taller than many PGs at 6’5″, though he’s a super-skinny 183 lbs., so he’s not lacking much in foot speed. His handle is competent, and his outside shot likewise. Delon’s 33% rate from 3-point range is better than DeMar DeRozan’s 26.6 – how’s that for summarizing the Raptors’ offensive problem in one stat?

I note with bemusement Delon’s PER of 15.0 in 2016-17. Congratulations – you’ve hit the theoretical middle of the road player number bang on.

Of course Delon’s numbers are skewed by the usual problem of a small sample size. He’s in a logjam at point guard, with Cory Joseph the normal first choice of coach Dwane Casey when Kyle Lowry needs a breather. What minutes remain might not automatically be Delon’s, as Fred VanVleet (who’s also younger than Wright) staked a claim for more attention with some solid play.

Wright has to be secretly praying for Lowry to decamp elsewhere. If he does, Delon’s importance to the Raptors increases dramatically. Barring a trade, training camp would feature a position battle of a kind we haven’t seen in a long time. Could Delon actually beat out Cory for the starter’s spot?

I don’t see that possibility as far-fetched. Who’s got the stats lead? For me, assist to turnover ratio is important. CoJo is tied with Lowry at 2.4, but Delon was 2.3, so that’s a wash. How about total steals vs turnovers? Delon was 27/25, while Cojo was 66/108. Hmmm…

Delon is behind Cory on the depth chart, and probably deserves to be, but the margin between them isn’t enormous. I want Lowry back, but his departure wouldn’t automatically mean a return to the draft lottery.