Raptors need to keep Gradey Dick in G League until he finds his form
Toronto Raptors rookie Gradey Dick probably won’t want to remember his first-ever experience playing in the NBA G League.
Dick was sent down Friday after struggling to start the year in the NBA, and Toronto probably hoped that some time down with Raptors 905 would help rejuvenate the 21-year-old’s shooting form.
But it’s clearly still a work in progress.
Going just .244 from the three-point range to begin the year in his first 15 NBA games, Dick’s shooting wasn’t all that better in his G League debut on Saturday.
In a 115-101 loss to the Capital City Go-Go, Dick shot just 1-for-12 from the field — and 0-for-6 from three-point range — registering just two points and a lone assist on the evening.
Drafted 13th overall out of Kansas with the hopes of providing a shooting touch to a team that often lacked one, Dick is still going through some growing pains in his first pro season.
“He’s our future and we’ve got to invest in him,” Toronto head coach Darko Rajakovic said first to the media on November 14 and repeated 10 days later after Toronto sent him down.
But it’s important to see that the actions back up those words.
The 905 has seven games between now and their holiday break that starts on December 14, and there’s no reason why Dick shouldn’t be playing the vast majority of them, including one tonight at home. In Toronto’s last six NBA contests, he’s clearly fallen out of Rajakovic’s favour, playing more than 12 minutes just once, sitting for a single game, and being kept home yesterday on the road against Cleveland while on assignment with the 905.
Whether it’s an issue of confidence, bad luck, conditioning, or some combination of the three, patience needs to be the most important thing in getting Dick to be a reliable NBA contributor.
It’s imperative that the Raptors see the bigger picture with his development and don’t feel the need to rush him back to the NBA. Sitting at 8-9 and 11th in the Eastern Conference, Toronto isn’t going to be a serious contender this season, barring some sort of major turnaround.
And given his early struggles, a 21-year-old rookie playing limited minutes off the bench isn’t likely to drive that turnaround either. For now, all they can do is stick to their development plan, and that’s one that should include as much G League action as possible until Dick begins to hit his stride.
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