Raptors basketball is finally back, and they will kick off their preseason in an unusual place: Quebec City. It will be Kawhi’s second debut as a Toronto Raptor, and on the other side, Giannis Antetokounmpo will also debut for his new team, the Miami Heat. It’s only preseason, so we probably won’t see too much from the two superstars, but here are three Raptors to watch out for in their opener.
- Nate Bittle
The undrafted big man out of Oregon will make his first appearance as a pro after impressing with Toronto’s summer league squad a few months ago. He averaged 10.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.5 blocks across his collegiate career, where he played in a total of 116 games (87 starts). During the summer league, he averaged 9.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 0.8 steals and a really impressive 2.8 blocks per game across only four summer league outings. His 7-foot size will be huge for Toronto, as outside of Poeltl, they don’t have another option at that height, and unlike Poeltl, Bittle offers floor-stretching ability with his three-ball. Toronto’s weakest position heading into the season is the center position, and there’s a big possibility that Bittle could carve out a role if he impresses in the preseason.
2. Kyle Anderson
For now, it looks like one of the newest Raptors debuts might be on hold as the 12-year veteran sat out of Toronto’s scrimmage on Thursday due to a bruised right knee. Anyway, if Anderson does play, it probably won’t be too long, like the starters and the veterans, but fans are probably excited to see how Slo Mo is going to fill the void left by last year’s breakout Sandro Mamukelashvili. Anderson has never put up insane numbers, but he’s a veteran presence on one of the younger teams in the NBA, and he’s always been a team-first guy who fits the Raptors’ motto of defence first and being an unselfish player who can move the rock. Last season he only attempted 0.3 three-pointers per game, so it will be interesting to see how he fits in with his new squad, who were also not known as a good three-point shooting team.
3. Allen Graves
Of course, Allen Graves makes the list, as a ton of eyes are going to be on the 19th overall pick out of Santa Clara. The forward was a redshirt in 2024/25 and then followed it up with a solid season of 11.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.9 steals and 0.9 blocks per game in 35 appearances. He also shot a solid 41.3 percent from three, but he’s not known as a shooter. Graves was really impressive in the summer league, where he averaged 16.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2.2 steals and 1 block per game. Again, he’s not known as a three-point shooter, but he shot an impressive 50 percent from beyond the arc and has gotten the fans salivating at the fact that maybe Bobby Webster has hit on two back-to-back first-round steals in the draft.
