If there are any fans who have wanted to get out to a Raptors 905 game but haven’t gotten around to it, Friday would be a good night. The 905 only have six home games left before the season wraps on April 1, and with the Toronto Raptors turning to a back-and-forth home-road schedule next week and hoping to get key players rest down the stretch, opportunities to see Raptors players at the Hershey Centre are running out.
The Raptors have assigned Lucas Nogueira, Delon Wright, and Bruno Caboclo to the 905 for Friday’s game against Iowa, as predicted.
All three were with the 905 briefly for practice Thursday before being recalled to sit on the bench against the Atlanta Hawks, and Nogueira and Wright will likely be recalled again Saturday. Caboclo, meanwhile, will probably stay with the 905, who play at the same time as the parent club on Saturday. All bets are off for Monday, when the 905 play a 12 p.m. game at the Air Canada Centre before the Raptors host the Chicago Bulls later that evening.
The three assignees should help the 905 as they look to close out their inaugural season strong. The 905 are 15-25 but have been much better in 2016 than that record would indicate, and they’re hosting a beatable Iowa Energy club that stands at 18-22. That said, the 905 have undergone a ton of turnover of late, and they’ll also be looking to get trade deadline acquisitions E.J. Singler and Davion Berry involved for the first time. Ronald Roberts and DeAndre Daniels could also return (or debut, as it were, for Daniels) from injury sometime soon. There’s never stability or consistency in the D-League, they’re learning.
Still, the bodies will help. Wright has been terrific, at least at the offensive end, when assigned, averaging 18.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, 6.8 assists, and 1.6 steals in 13 games while knocking down 35.6 percent of his threes. Nogueira’s focus and energy have been inconsistent but he remains a rim-protecting force and creative passer for a big man, averaging 9.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 2.1 blocks in his nine games. Caboclo remains a long-term work in progress, but he’s moving forward and is averaging 14.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.7 assists, one steal, and 1.6 blocks, and a slow start from long-range has gradually improved to a 34.7-percent mark on threes.
The game should be a really good test for those three on offense, as Iowa ranks as the D-League’s second-best defensive outfit, giving up just 103.4 points per-100 possessions.
