The Eastern Conference is wide open for the 2025-26 season.
With injuries to stars Jayson Tatum, Damian Lillard, and Tyrese Haliburton, and with the uncertain future of Giannis Antetokounmpo, the opportunity for teams to leap to the top of the conference and have a competitive playoff run is there, and the Toronto Raptors should be right in that mix.
After a 25 and 30-win season that involved a lot of losing, trading away a lot of their previous main core. The Raptors have blown it all up, but now have rebuilt a new core that can be competitive for years to come.
Here’s the Raptors’ Current Depth Chart:
Point Guards: Immanuel Quickley, Jamal Shead
Shooting Guards: RJ Barrett, Gradey Dick, Ja’Kobe Walter, A.J Lawson, Jamison Battle
Small Forwards: Brandon Ingram, Ochai Agbaji
Power Forwards: Scottie Barnes, Jonathan Mogbo
Centers: Jakob Poeltl, Colin Castleton, Ulrich Chomche
The Raptors were awarded the 9th pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, their highest pick since 2021 when they took Scottie Barnes at 4th overall. A real opportunity to add an exciting top prospect to this well-built and balanced current core. There are some glaring needs in some areas in this rotation, and this selection can help solve that and help this team make a playoff push this season and in the future.
Here is a current projection of the top eight selections before the Raptors pick:
NBA 2025 First 8 Pick Mock Draft via NBADRAFT.NET
1. Dallas Mavericks – Cooper Flagg, F, Duke
2. San Antonio Spurs – Dylan Harper, G, Rutgers
3. Philadelphia 76ers – V.J. Edgecombe, G, Baylor
4. Charlotte Hornets – Kon Knueppel, G, Duke
5. Utah Jazz – Ace Bailey, F, Rutgers
6. Washington Wizards – Tre Johnson, G, Texas
7. New Orleans Pelicans – Jeremiah Fears, G, Oklahoma
8. Brooklyn Nets – Egor Demin, F, BYU
Based on these projections and the players available, here are 3 directions the Raptors can go with the 9th pick:
Option 1: Derik Queen, F/C, Maryland, Fr, 6’10”, 250 lbs
2024-25 Stats: 36 Games, 16.5 Points, 9 Rebounds, 1.9 Assists
Queen has one of the more unique skill sets from this draft class. A 6’10” big man who moves very smooth for his size and has an offensive game that current NBA teams would love from their big. Queen has a great ability to catch and create from anywhere on the court, and can get buckets whether he is going downhill or in the post. He can handle the ball and create chances for his teammates with his exceptional passing ability for a player of his size. There can be many opportunities for an offence to be centred around his play style. A true versatile big man with high basketball IQ, a role that teams around the league utilize on the offensive side of the ball, Queen has similar traits to players like Domantas Sabonis, Alperen Şengün, and even small shades of Nikola Jokić.
What Queen lacks is the ideal size at the center position and his defensive ability, which he will need to adjust to at the NBA level. He hasn’t consistently demonstrated rim protection and was often targeted by other teams on the defensive end. He may struggle at first playing the center position, which may lead to him playing most of his minutes as a power forward. Queen, throughout his freshman season, flashed potential on the defensive end, but will need to be consistent and have a high motor to make an impact at the NBA level.
The potential for Queen with his offensive ability and versatility is too hard for the Raptors to pass on. He will be able to fit in on a frontcourt that lacks depth and will be surrounded by players who complement his skill set well, making him the best-case scenario pick for the Raptors.
Option 2: Khaman Maluach, C, Duke, Fr, 7’2”, 250 lbs
2024-25 Stats: 39 Games, 8.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.3 blocks
The sky is the limit for Maluach to become a great center at the NBA level. The South Sudan native, who only began playing organized basketball at 14, has turned into a projected top-10 pick just four years later. At only 18 years old, he still has lots of time to grow and develop his game.
Maluach’s skillset is completely different from Derik Queen‘s, a true lob threat with a great catch radius, and a defensive anchor around the rim with great blocking ability can making it difficult for smaller players to score around the rim. He runs the pick and roll well, creating chances for himself to catch lobs and finish at the rim. For a center, around the perimeter, he showed flashes of being able to defend the pick and roll and defend smaller guards, holding his own at times. He has a 9’8” standing reach, which, coming into the NBA, will be one of the tallest, and it helps him significantly with the ability to block and affect shots.
Maluach will need time to develop his overall game; he has glaring issues that he will need to work on to become a more complete center at the NBA level. He has very little shooting ability, struggles at times guarding in the post, and at times during the season, he has had lapses where he has lacked making an impact on the game on both sides of the floor. These flaws may have been created by his short basketball experience, but he will continue to learn and fix these flaws and tendencies as he goes throughout his NBA career, and has already started to develop his three-point jumpshot while at Duke.
A positive to Maluach’s development was his decision to attend Duke. Unlike most bigs with similar size and late starts in basketball who enter the draft, typically come from playing overseas, or a lower level of competition, where they are just physically dominant over weak competition. Maluach was the defensive anchor for one of the top college programs in the country that made a Final Four run and got to play alongside lottery picks Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel. He was able to thrive in his role during his one year at Duke. This decision will make his transition to the league a lot easier than some may believe, as he has played against top competition, and he has experience in high-stakes games.
The Raptors’ current glaring need for a long-term center, Maluach can solve, and is currently the most realistic option for this pick. Time will tell with this pick, but the Raptors could potentially have their defensive anchor for years to come if they can get their hands on Khaman Maluach.
Option 3: Trade Down and Select Nique Clifford
Nique Clifford, G/F, Colorado State, Senior, 6’6”, 200 lbs
2024-25 Stats: 36 Games, 18.9 Points, 9.6 Rebounds, 4.4 Assists
This is a complete longshot of a move by the Raptors, but if they are not able to select either Queen or Maluach, trading down and gaining assets could be a great move. With a lot of players outside the top 10 being high-risk, boom or bust prospects, who are potentially a few years away from being NBA-ready, the Raptors cannot afford to miss on them. Trading down would allow them the chance to select one of the more NBA-ready prospects in the draft, Nique Clifford.
Clifford will be 24 in his rookie season, and there might not be a lot of room to grow in his game, but he can immediately be a rotation player for the Raptors on opening night. He possesses traits of an off-the-bench glue guy in the NBA, a player who can do a little bit of everything on the court at a competitive level, but is led by his biggest trait, his defence. Clifford has the frame and ability to guard multiple positions and can disrupt passing lanes that can lead to transition offence, which he thrives in when it comes to finishing at the rim. On offence, he can play off the ball and get open for himself to hit open shots. At times, finds ways to create for himself on the ball to create shots or get to the rim, and can also get his teammates involved, making the right pass. One of his standout traits that he has for a player his size is his rebounding ability, making an impact on the glass, where he averaged almost 10 rebounds a game last season.
The real question for Clifford is, can he do this all consistently at the NBA level, where he can have an impact and play meaningful minutes. Clifford will most likely adapt to playing a 3 and D type role, as he can be inconsistent with his shot creation and shooting with the ball in his hands, and will need to lean on making plays on the defensive end and playing off-the-ball. He will need to quickly adapt to a much higher level of competition compared to the mid-major schools he was playing against in college, unlike most of the younger top prospects, who were consistently playing top power-five schools.
If he’s able to put it all together, this can be a great value pick from the Raptors that can fit into their rotation immediately, as they look to have a competitive run in the playoffs this season and in the future. Clifford can play a similar role to New York Knicks’ guard Josh Hart, a player with a high motor who can do a little bit of everything on the floor to help his team win.
It will be an intriguing watch for fans tonight to see which outcome the Raptors’ front office will decide to go with. On one of the craziest days of the NBA season, and what moves they will make to improve this roster for the future, as they look to get back into the NBA playoffs.