Raptors' Gradey Dick is outperforming many NBA stars this season
When the Toronto Raptors took Gradey Dick at 13th overall in the NBA Draft in 2023 from the University of Kansas, they were hoping for a player they’d be able to rely on for a long time.
In a team that was going through a bit of an identity crisis in Dick’s rookie season, it wasn’t quite sure exactly where he’d fit into the team’s rebuilding plans.
An early season shooting slump and multiple G League stints from Dick made some fans question exactly how he’d develop, though he seemed to be ready from the get-go for the long road ahead.
“Whatever role the coach gives me, I’m perfectly fine with,” Dick told Daily Hive on draft night.
In 2024, they might’ve finally got an on-court star, or at least the makings of one.
Though it’s early days in his second NBA season, Dick has found his groove to begin the year. His 21 points per game ranks him 36th in the league. Among his 2023 Draft class, Dick is the only player with upwards of 20 points per night this year.
For comparison, Memphis’ Ja Morant is putting up 20 points per game this season, while former Raptors power forward Pascal Siakam is putting up 19.8 points a night this season with Indiana. That’s not to say Dick has suddenly ascended to star status, though he’s showing consistent flashes of what the NBA’s top players produce on a yearly basis.
Points-per-game aren’t the be-all and end-all in evaluating a basketball player — far from it — but he’s clearly taken a strong leap as one of the young leaders of a rebuilding Raptors squad. Part of his increased role has been due to necessity, with Scottie Barnes, Immanuel Quickley, and RJ Barrett all battling various injuries over the first few weeks of the season.
“I’ve always had just the mentality, I know I talked about when I first got in the league, of just doing what I’m called for,” Dick said on Saturday night, reiterating a draft-night promise. “The role that I’m playing is whatever benefits the team. I’m never going to go out there and try to be bigger than myself. And at the same time, preparation, you know, is right up there with the importance of everything.”
And the preparation appears to be working out just fine for Dick. Just a season ago, he hit the 20-point mark four times throughout the season, but he’s already hit that mark just as many times this season.
“[Raptors veteran] Garrett Temple tells me all the time, you know, in a season of 82 games, you never know what’s going to happen,” He said. “if you’re prepared for whatever, then you can, you know, jump right in there.”
The Raptors take on the Denver Nuggets tonight on the road, with opening tipoff set for 10 pm ET.
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