It was no surprise when the Toronto Raptors converted Canadian wing Oshae Brissett to a two-way contract earlier in the day. He joined the Raptors for pre-season under an Exhibit-10 deal, and he impressed with his defense and energy. Raised for some years in Mississauga, Brissett’s move to the Raptors 905 is a homecoming of sorts. Less expected is the news that the Toronto Raptors have signed Shamorie Ponds. The news was broken by Ponds himself and confirmed by the Athletic’s Blake Murphy, who is reporting that Ponds is taking the 905’s second two-way contract.
Ponds is a 21-year old rookie guard who played college ball for the St. John’s Red Storm in New York. The lefty scorer averaged 19.7 points, 4.3 assists, 4.5 rebounds, 2.3 steals, and 0.2 blocks per game in his junior year on 45.4 percent shooting from the field and 35.3 percent shooting from deep. Despite being undersized with a smaller wingspan, he is very quick and athletic, and he has excellent hands on the defensive end. He’s a score-first guard, and he and Matt Morgan will give the 905 plenty of scoring punch in the back-court.
Ponds had a bizarre contract reversal earlier in the Fall when it appeared he was signed to a two-way contract with the Houston Rockets. It was later voided because of financial reasons.
The Raptors 905 will now be led by Brissett and Ponds. Likely to also join the roster are Sagaba Konate and Devin Robinson, who were cut by the Raptors earlier in the pre-season. They were both on Exhibit-10 contracts. Matt Morgan and Tyler Ennis were also signed very briefly by the Raptors to Exhibit-10 contracts before being cut almost immediately; all four players will boost their earnings by 50K if they do play with the 905. The Raptors will probably also assign Dewan Hernandez and maybe even Terence Davis to the 905 for some time during their rookie seasons, so the 905 will be loaded with plenty of talent.
