Toronto Raptors rookie Gradey Dick is using every resource around him to bring himself up to speed on the NBA game writes TSN's Josh Lewenberg.
VANCOUVER – Every year around this time, dating back to his high school days in Kansas, Gradey Dick will sit down with his dad, Bart, and make a list of goals for the upcoming basketball season.
“That’s the real OG,” Dick said. “Him, Otto , those guys are huge mentors to me right now. I can’t tell you the age gap between us; I can probably be their son.” He knows how valuable that tutelage can be for young guys coming into the league. Teams have player development coaches and support staff in place to help ease the transition, both on and off the court. Still, nothing beats getting firsthand advice from a peer, somebody that’s lived and experienced it himself.
Generally, Masai Ujiri’s stated preference has been to use those end-of-roster spots on younger, higher-upside players – the thinking being that even if they’re not playing those guys can still develop into future rotation pieces. After years of churning out developmental success stories, from Norman Powell to Fred VanVleet to Chris Boucher, that pipeline has gone dry of late, making this an odd signing on the surface.
“I love the mix that we have on our team,” Temple said. “You don’t want too many old guys. You don’t want too many young guys. You want the mix and I think we have a very good mix on our team. Look across the roster, from guys 19 to guys 37 , and a lot in between.” There’s a maturity to Dick that you don’t often see in 19-year-old professional athletes, which should serve him well as he begins to navigate this very tough business. He’s already been tested in that regard, hearing his name come up in trade rumours late in the summer as the Raptors made a run at Damian Lillard.
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