On the tails of Axel Toupane being named the D-League’s Most Improved Player, Raptors 905 find themselves taking home another end-of-season award.
Scott Suggs has won the D-League’s Jason Collier Sportsmanship Award, as voted by the league’s 19 head coaches to award the player who “best represents the ideals of character and conduct on and off the court. ”
The 905’s veteran leader and most experienced player at just 26, Suggs quickly emerged as a key piece of the team’s identity and culture. Always the steady hand head coach Jesse Mermuys turned to when the offense became erratic, Suggs would act as an extension of the coaching staff on and off the floor, helping the upstart 905 locker room find its way in the league.
Quote from Scott Suggs on receiving the Jason Collier Sportsmanship Award: pic.twitter.com/ltLfRidjGG
— Raptors905MR (@Raptors905MR) April 21, 2016
On the court, Suggs appeared to be friends with just about everyone around the league, from players to coaches to referees. With an easygoing demeanor and a calming presence about him, Suggs worked to keep tempers calm and, again, keep an up-and-down expansion team on the rails in high-leverage situations. That he averaged 18 points and hit 41.9 percent of his threes is somehow almost secondary to how important his poise was to the team, although those numbers earned him an All-Star nod.
Quote from @Raptors905 GM Dan Tolzman on Scott Suggs receiving the @nbadleague Jason Collier Sportsmanship Award: pic.twitter.com/mHJqvu196V
— Raptors905MR (@Raptors905MR) April 21, 2016
Off the court, Suggs was an instrumental piece in growing the 905 brand in their first season. The 905 did a great job with public outreach all season long, and Suggs was a key part of many of those efforts, even sticking around at the end of the season to continue those efforts. He also peeled back the curtain for fans, writing a season-long diary for Upside & Motor.
The entire Raptors organization very clearly values the quality of their people as an organizational asset, something that’s come to the forefront multiple times this year. This is another indicator that being a good human is the first box you have to tick off with the Raptors, and Suggs ticked it off emphatically all year.
This is a great nod for Suggs, who was always a pleasure to deal with, speaking from my own personal perspective.
