The NBA Draft Lottery may have come and gone, but fear not, there’s always something to look forward to if you’re a Toronto Raptors fan.
As Conference Finals games get underway on Tuesday, with a boatload of Canadian and Raptors connections sprinkled throughout the final four rosters, there’s plenty of post-season hoops for folks up north to enjoy.
Once the playoffs end in about of month, however, don’t expect too much of a break. The 2025 Draft will only be a handful of days away, and then comes a summer full of hopes and dreams as all 30 teams prepare for the 2025-26 season.
So while you let your imagination run rampant, here are some key dates to keep in mind.
2025 NBA Draft (June 25-26)
For a second year in a row, the league will expand its welcoming of prospects into a two-day affair.
The festivities begin on June 25, presumably opening with the Dallas Mavericks, who leapfrogged to up the board with just 1.8 per cent odds of landing the No. 1 pick. And while decisions appear relatively clear at the top heading into the draft — it would be a massive curveball if anyone not named Cooper Flagg was selected No. 1 overall — things get much murkier around No. 9, where the Toronto Raptors are currently slotted.
Ultimately, a couple of ping pong balls wiped away hopes of a fairy-tale finish after Toronto’s moribund 30-52 campaign. So now the long, hard road to rebuilding from the middle begins. For the sake of a silver lining, we all saw how impactful the 2024 rookie class was, despite none of them coming from the lottery.
So with hopes of being competitive next season — in an Eastern Conference that could look quite different following the decision of a Greek superstar and a notable injury to the defending champs — the addition of Brandon Ingram and at least two 2025 draft picks (Nos. 9 and 39) could quickly turn those desires into reality.
However, nailing the selection will be a challenge. Whether the Raptors’ draft philosophy leans towards choosing the best player available (whatever that means) or filling positional need, the pool of potential candidates hardly shrinks.
Bigs like Duke’s Khaman Maluach or Maryland’s Derik Queen keep showing up at No. 9 in mocks across the league, something conventional wisdom would favour given the Raptors’ lack of centre depth. But is the draft about checking boxes or uncovering possible diamonds in the rough? You’ll find out Toronto’s answer to that question in just over a month.
Unofficial start of free agency (June 30*)
If you’re wondering why there’s an asterisk next to the date, it’s because that’s the day NBA teams can begin negotiating with upcoming free agents around the league, starting at 6 p.m. ET, to be exact.
Talks start before that, however, as teams can begin speaking to players on their own rosters just one day after the conclusion of the NBA Finals. And this year, that could be as early as June 14, should there be a sweep, or on June 23 if the series goes a full seven games.
Anticipate plenty of chatter surrounding the Raptors whenever that first window opens, considering they have three extension-eligible players (RJ Barrett, Jakob Poeltl and Ochai Agbaji) and a pair of veteran free agents (Chris Boucher and Garrett Temple). It was around this point in 2024 that we learned of the Scottie Barnes rookie-scale max extension and the Raptors inking Immanuel Quickley to a five-year, $175 million deal.
And come June 30, expect rumours and reports to start flying willy-nilly. It’s essentially the Super Bowl for NBA newsbreakers.
Official start of free agency (July 6)
This is the date that teams can finally announce deals, after logistical elements such as physicals are completed in between. That window opens up at 12:01 p.m. ET.
Summer league (July 10-20)
Once all the transactional fun settles down, it’ll be time for actual basketball to return in our lives.
The NBA held three summer leagues last year, but the Raptors only took part in Las Vegas. And somewhat fittingly, the Sin City was not a blissful experience for the dinos.
Toronto went 2-3 in the 2024 Las Vegas Summer League, ending the tourney on a three-game skid despite a stacked roster that included rookies Ja’Kobe Walter (drafted 19th overall in 2024), Jonathan Mogbo (31st), Jamal Shead (45th), Jamison Battle (undrafted) and a pair of former lottery picks in Gradey Dick (13th) and Ochai Agbaji (14th) taking part.
In fairness, Dick and Mogbo both battled injuries throughout the two weeks.
It’ll be interesting to see what the Raptors decide to do this summer. While it’s a given the 2025 rookies will take part, how many of Toronto’s sophomores will take part?
My guess would be all of them, but at the very least, Walter and Mogbo ought to get those reps. The Raptors’ lone first-round pick in 2024 ended up missing 30 games due to various injuries, while the top selection of the second round was also sidelined at one point because of an injury, but also saw himself iced out of the rotation for a month in January as he worked on his game with the 905 in the G League. Again, that doesn’t mean Battle or Shead, who each made 59 and 75 regular-season appearances couldn’t benefit from Summer League either.
I’m mostly curious to see if Dick will be there. The second-year wing flashed a bit of everything, especially early on in the season. But even his strong start wasn’t immune to a sophomore slump, and eventually the injury bug bit him too, as he missed the final 21 games of the year.
By no means is there a strong link between success in July and October, but if Agbaji’s impressive turnaround is any indication, the extra reps wouldn’t hurt.
If you’re eagerly anticipating the Raptors’ 2025 Summer League roster, last year tells us it should be announced approximately two days before action gets underway.
2025-26 schedule announcement (mid-August)
I’d love to provide a more concrete date, but the NBA has yet to confirm those details. The league tends to release the full 82-game schedule for every team roughly two months before the start of the regular season.
For instance, the 2024-25 schedule was announced on Aug. 15 last year for an Oct. 22 opening night.
Start of pre-season (October 2)
While a complete schedule for all 30 teams is not known, the NBA has announced a handful of pre-season matchups. Starting with the New York Knicks taking on the Philadelphia 76ers on Oct. 2 and 4 in Abu Dhabi. It’ll be the first of three international sets throughout the pre-season, none of which include the Raptors.
Expect Toronto’s pre-season to begin shortly after its Atlantic Division rivals face off on the other side of the world. Last year, the Raptors went 3-2 through their five pre-season games.
Opening night of the 2025-26 season (October 21)
And just like that, the 80th season of NBA basketball will be upon us! No matchups for Day 1 of the upcoming season have been reported or announced yet.
