When in doubt, draft the best athlete available. That's exactly what the Raptors did.
With the No. 9 pick, Toronto selected 6-foot-6 shooting guard DeMar DeRozan, who left USC after his freshman year. DeRozan still has much work to do, but nobody is questioning his athleticism. "What I need to work on is what I have been working on since I got out of college, ball-handling, shooting, defense," DeRozan said. "I want to work on everything so, at the end of the day, I can be the all-around player that I need to be."
DeRozan was one of the players the Raptors targeted and had in for a workout. He averaged 13.9 points in his only USC season.
If DeRozan can develop, it could give the Raptors some much-needed star power down the road. It remains to be seen how long star forward Chris Bosh, who can become a free agent next summer, will remain with Toronto.
The one immediate problem with DeRozan is his shooting. He shot a meager 16.7 percent from three-point range for the Trojans.
"He needs to increase his range and become a better shooter," said assistant general manager Masai Ujiri. "He has to work on a couple of things, but I think he's a great athlete, a great kid... It might take a couple of years, but I think he grows into being a good player."
