Role players defined the 2015 NBA Draft for the Raptors

Heading into the 2015 NBA Draft, Toronto Raptors fans and the team itself were discouraged.

Canada’s team hobbled to the finish line in 2015, going 13-16 post all-star break. The Raptors were still able to claim the Atlantic Division, however, while finishing fourth in the Eastern Conference. That would set up a first-round matchup against Paul Pierce and the Washington Wizards, where the lower-seeded Wiz would make quick work of Toronto, sweeping them 4-0.

That landed the Raptors with the 20th overall pick, their only selection in the draft. They would go on to choose a senior point guard from Utah by the name of Delon Wright. The Raptors weren’t done there, however, as they also acquired another rookie in the second round via trade, and you might have heard of the senior shooting guard out of UCLA at the time, Norman Powell.

Technically selected 46th overall by the Milwaukee Bucks, Powell was traded to Toronto along with a 2017 first-round draft pick, who would turn out to be OG Anunoby, for point guard Greivis Vásquez. This would turn out to be one of the best trades ever by recently fired Raptors President Masai Ujiri, as Powell and Anunoby were big parts of the team going forward, while Vásquez was out of the league two seasons and 26 games later.

Back to the headliner of the draft for the Raptors at the time in Wright, where in his final season at Utah, he was named the top point guard in collegiate basketball, receiving the 2015 Bob Cousy award. The 6-foot-5, 190-pound guard was an All-Pac-12 and All-Pac-12 Defensive Team selection in his senior season as well, averaging 14.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.1 steals across 35 games.

As a junior the previous year, he recorded 15.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 2.5 steals in 33 contests.

Across three and a half seasons with Toronto, Wright averaged 6.7 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.3 stocks across 172 games with the Raptors before being traded to the Memphis Grizzlies, along with Jonas Valanciunas and CJ Miles, for Marc Gasol in 2019.

Powell was also out of the PAC-12, spending all four years of his collegiate career at UCLA. As a senior, he averaged career-highs across the board, including points (16.4), rebounds (4.7), assists (2.1), and steals (1.8).

In five and a half seasons as a Raptor, Powell averaged 9.9 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.0 stocks while averaging career-highs in nearly every single statistical category during the 2019-2020 season. The following year, however, Powell would be flipped to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Gary Trent Jr. and Rodney Hood.

Both Powell and Wright had an integral hand in the championship, with Powell as a player and Wright as a piece in the Gasol trade. They were also both components of the “bench mob” in 2017-18, when the duo were joined by Fred VanVleet, CJ Miles, Pascal Siakam, and Jakob Poeltl.

The picks ultimately added some utility and athleticism to the guard spots from the bench that were needed in Toronto back then.

Overall, the 2015 draft produced four all-stars: first overall pick Karl-Anthony Towns, second overall selection D’Angelo Russell, fourth overall pick Kristaps Porzingis, and 13th selection Devin Booker. Multiple other players selected were useful as well, with Powell topping the list alongside Myles Turner, Terry Rozier, Kelly Oubre Jr., Josh Richardson, Bobby Portis, and Tyus Jones.

Wright ultimately became an average player for the selection, while Powell was undoubtedly a steal. 2015 would be the start of a fantastic three-year drafting stretch for Toronto, where it would set up the Raptors for years to come and ultimately the franchise’s only championship.

Make sure to check back on Raptors Republic as we continue to take a look back at previous Raptors’ drafts.

The post Role players defined the 2015 NBA Draft for the Raptors first appeared on Raptors Republic.