The 2025-26 season will be a massive one for the Toronto Raptors. With the acquisition of Brandon Ingram signifying that Toronto is attempting to transition out of their rebuilding phase and hoping to take a step toward returning to the playoffs, the expectations this year for each player on the roster have risen. There are more expectations on certain players than others of course, and with this new season approaching, there are five players in particular who have the most pressure on them on this team.
5. RJ Barrett
Last season, due to the numerous injuries that plagued the Toronto Raptors, RJ Barrett found himself with an increased load more often than not. While this did allow his game to grow in certain areas such as playmaking, it also hurt his overall efficiency. This season, Barrett will have a new task ahead of him. With the addition of Ingram, there is a new ball handler on the team who will no doubt impact the touches of Barrett. The test for Barrett this season will be if he can coexist in this new Raptors offensive ecosystem.
With Scottie Barnes and Ingram being the likely leaders in usage, along with point guard Immanuel Quickley being the initiator for plenty of sets, Barrett will find himself in a situation where he may not be getting as many looks as he likes. Toronto’s offensive scheme is built around moving the ball and rewarding cutters, and Barrett has shown that he is a willing and impactful cutter. But on the other hand, he may desire more on-ball reps than will be available to him this season. The pressure comes from how Barrett responds to a less than ideal situation for his individual stats.
4. Immanuel Quickley
Before last season began, Toronto made Quickley a $175 million man. He was presented with this deal as a show of the Raptors faith in how far his game could grow. Unfortunately he was only able to suit up 33 times last season, as he was faced with a seemingly neverending slew of injuries. Even when he suited up, he was usually recovering from an injury and trying to work his way back. Throughout his Raptors career, Quickley has also not yet shown if he is the true point guard of the future that Toronto wants him to be. He still has room to grow as a passer and as a scorer, as he still is not the driver that you want your lead guard to be.
The pressure for him this season is not only staying healthy, but also making meaningful strides in his game. Quickley is a more than capable three-point shooter but he needs to grow on-ball and with a live dribble in order to maximize his potential value to this team.
3. Gradey Dick
Gradey Dick has an extremely big season ahead of him. The former lottery pick is headed into year 3 of his career, and in this NBA climate the clock is ticking rapidly for him to become a bonafide rotation player. Dick does bring some value in his minutes, but currently he falls short in a few areas. Last season, Dick was often the lone shooting threat in his lineups, so his off-ball movement and just overall presence was used to create space for his teammates. Dick also shot 38 percent on catch and shoot threes, and 35 percent on all three-pointers.
His defense and his finishing are two areas in which he has to make noticeable strides. With his 6’6” 205 lb frame, both of these things have been challenges for Dick thus far in his career. Dick has had an entire off-season to bulk up, and work on his game to the point that he is a more complete offensive player. Dick will likely never be an elite defender, but he has to at least be able to hold his own in certain spots on-ball. He is willing to cover plenty of ground off-ball on defense, the issue is getting those stops. The pressure for him is that there are other young players in Toronto such as Ja’Kobe Walter and rookie Collin Murray-Boyles who could potentially take his minutes if he does not hold up his end of the bargain.
2. Scottie Barnes
Toronto’s franchise star has to step up in a big way this season if this team has any hopes of taking a step. Last season was fairly middling from him efficiency and scoring wise, and this season can not be a repeat of last season. Last season Barnes averaged 19.3 points per game, 5.8 assists per game, and 7.7 rebounds per game while shooting 44 percent from the field and 27 percent from three. All of these marks are less than what he averaged the season prior. Barnes’ has been a bit focused on developing his outside shot which can explain this dip in efficiency.
Barnes’ defense is what really shined last season, as he showed an other-wordly ability on that end of the floor. His length and instincts along with his size empowered him to be a jack of all trades on defense, guard multiple positions and be all over the court. It often felt like Barnes was in multiple places at once, he would stonewall a drive on one end of the floor, and then be imposition to help on the subsequent shot attempt. His defense is currently his best NBA skill, but for there to be true improvement for this team, he needs to sharpen up his offense, namely his shot selection.
- Brandon Ingram
With the Ingram trade that occurred at the trade deadline last season, there was an abundance of hope placed on his shoulders. Not only did Toronto trade for this former All-Star while he was on the shelf with an injury, they also gave him a three-year $120 million contract extension. Before he has even played one second of basketball with this franchise, he has already been given a lucrative contract, signifying the belief in what his skills can bring to this team, and where he can help take them.
In the last three seasons combined, Ingram has played 127 out of a possible 246 games, so Toronto is also placing a good amount of faith in his ability to bounce back from the injury issues that have impacted Ingram over the last few years.
With all these things being said, Ingram’s scoring and playmaking ability is something that Toronto could benefit from immensely. Ingram is one of the NBA’s premier mid-range scorers, and his on-ball playmaking is also strong. Toronto has been missing this type of on-ball creation since they parted ways with Pascal Siakam, so adding Ingram to this team fills an archetype void. With Ingram added the halfcourt offense should be stronger, and it should also ease the creation burden on Barnes and Quickley as well.
