The Raptors selected Collin Murray-Boyles No. 9 overall. Is Vision 6’9 back?
With the 9th pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, the Toronto Raptors select… Collin Murray-Boyles out of the University of South Carolina.
Imagine I am giving my best Adam Silver impression. Anyway, that’s what the Raptors did at last night’s NBA Draft, selecting Collin Murray-Boyles No. 9 overall, shocking people given that Khaman Maluach was still on the board. Murray-Boyles was one of the prospects we had as an option for the Raptors, but Khaman Maluach seemed to be the overwhelming favourite among oddsmakers, fans, and scouts. He would have filled the team’s immediate need for a backup center prospect and appeared to have a high ceiling. Oh well, it didn’t happen.
Looking now to the actual new Raptor, Collin Murray-Boyles is exactly the kind of player this Raptors front office loves: Long forward, plays great defence, gritty, can play small-ball as a five. It almost feels as if Vision 6’9 is back?
Before we get into Murray-Boyles as a fit into this current Raptors team, let’s talk about him as an individual prospect. As JD said in his profile of Murray-Boyles, he brings a combination of high motor, defensive ability, high basketball IQ and grit. He’s one of those rare lottery prospects who played more than one year in college, opting to stay with his hometown South Carolina Gamecocks to continue to build upon his skills. That means he comes to Toronto with one more year of experience and maturity, which will help him adjust to the NBA.
Given my involvement with the women’s basketball world, I have quite a few contacts down in South Carolina, and my understanding from them is that Murray-Boyles wants to work. He has a chip on his shoulder, something Raptors general manager Bobby Webster mentioned Wednesday night after the team made their selection official. He comes from working-class parents who instilled in him a sense of pride in the process, is polite and well-mannered, and understands that success is earned, not given. Honestly, such a huge bonus in recruitment these days.
Okay, all of that aside, the fit on this current Raptors team is interesting. Given that Murray-Boyles is (currently) going to primed to be a bench/role player on this team, who have hopes to make a playoff appearance, I like it. Many fans online are catastrophizing this pick, saying that the team now needs to move off of Scottie Barnes or RJ Barrett to make this “work,” and that’s not the case. Depth exists, and unless you are picking in the top-four range, this player is not meant to come in and immediately be a starter. This also gives the Raptors options now on the market in the next year if they end up having to include Ochai Agbaji in a deal, so that the bench’s defence isn’t immediately decimated. Picking an athletic forward who can play small-ball center also kind of fills two needs at the same time, given the team’s need for a backup center.
Does the shooting need to improve? Yes. Yet, on a team with a defensive identity, you take that as an area for development and focus on his other high-level skills.
Is it perfect given the team’s immediate needs? No, but you also have to think of the best available when drafting these very young kids. To everyone, best available will be different, but clearly, Murray-Boyles is to this front office, on and off the court. This is not like drafting in the WNBA, where players have 4-5 years of playing experience; these kids are so fresh, and a lot of their ceiling is a guessing game.
Picking a sturdy, versatile option is a safe way to ensure the team has options no matter what they decide to do throughout the next year. This player isn’t going to be an immediate integral piece of this team, and developing your prospect into the kind of player THE TEAM wants him to be rather than who THE PLAYER himself wants to be is important. Pick a guy who is hungry, ready to learn, zero ego, and moldable into any kind of player — Murray-Boyles seems to be that on first look.
With all of that being said, I give this pick a B — not terrible by any means, but with achievable room for improvement.