Former South Carolina big man Collin Murray-Boyles thinks Toronto’s defense can be scary this season now that Kawhi Leonard is back in a Raptors uniform. Asked by Sportsnet how good the unit can be, the second-year forward did not hold back, as reported by ClutchPoints.
“Really good. I don’t think we have a limit to how good we can be,” Murray-Boyles said. “If we’re all dialed in, I feel like it’s going to be a nightmare for any team if we’re all on the same page.”
He added that the biggest hurdle is “more mental than our ability,” pointing to communication, help defense and rotations.
The IAHHM Take
The confidence is earned. Toronto was already a top-five defense last season, going 46-36 as the East’s No. 5 seed before falling to Cleveland 114-102 in Game 7 of the first round. Then the Raptors went and got Kawhi back from the Clippers, sending Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick and draft picks to L.A. That is a two-time Defensive Player of the Year who already brought Toronto a title in 2019.
Murray-Boyles is a big part of why this works. The No. 9 pick in the 2025 draft averaged 8.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 0.9 steals and 0.9 blocks in 57 games as a rookie and made the All-Rookie Second Team. Gamecock fans watched him do the dirty work in Columbia, and now he is learning next to one of the best two-way wings of his generation.
The question is whether a defense-first team with a 35-year-old Kawhi can get past a Cleveland squad that sent them home last spring. Are the Raptors a real threat in the East, or just a tough out?
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Source: ClutchPoints, via Sportsnet
