Rookie Allen Graves willing to do anything the Toronto Raptors ask of him

TORONTO – Allen Graves stopped and shook every reporter’s hand before he stepped into his post-practice media scrum on Monday. 

When he had answered all their questions, he shook everyone’s hand again, thanking them for their time.

It’s rare for any professional athlete to be so formal, but Graves is dedicated to doing all the little things right, including anything that the Toronto Raptors ask of him.

“Whatever the plan is for me, I’m ready and willing,” the 20-year-old said. “Just hopefully whatever it may be, I’m just going to take every opportunity I get and just run with it.”

The Raptors drafted Graves 19th overall out of Santa Clara University this past summer. 

Graves redshirted his first season with Santa Clara, but averaged 11.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game for the Broncos last season. He also had 1.9 steals and 0.9 blocks per game in his only NCAA season, earning him the West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year awards.

Graves won’t be a starter in his rookie NBA season as Kawhi Leonard, Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and Jakob Poeltl are a lock to be on the floor when Toronto tips off against the Chicago Bulls in Wednesday’s home opener. 

It will be hard to crack the rotation, too, as Collin Murray-Boyles, Jamal Shead and Ja’Kobe Walter will all come off the bench ahead of him.

But come what may, even if it’s time with Raptors 905 of the G-League, Graves will embrace it.

“Whatever they see as the best plan for me this year (is fine). Redshirt years have always benefited me, at Santa Clara, I took a redshirt year,” Graves said courtside at OVO Athletic Centre, Toronto’s training facility. “Obviously, I want to be out there on the court with those guys. I want to be playing with Scottie and playing with those guys. 

“But if they say the best fit is 905 or whatever it may be, and come bring me in later, then that’s what it is.”

Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic wasn’t surprised that Graves had taken the time to shake all the reporters’ hands. In their short time together, he’s come to appreciate the forward’s attention to detail.

“He’s been talking to his teammates a lot, trying to pick up on everything, every time,” said Rajakovic. “When we went to the game on the road he was the first on the bus.

“All the small things that you teach a young player on how to be a professional, he’s doing and he’s doing a great job so far.”

Graves played 23 minutes in Friday’s 129-125 pre-season loss to the Detroit Pistons, scoring nine points and grabbing eight rebounds as Toronto’s centre. The Raptors didn’t play their top eight players in the exhibition even though Detroit put out some of its star players like Cade Cunningham, Jalen Duren and Duncan Robinson.

“Just the experience of being out there, especially being able to play against those guys,” Graves said. “They played their starting core for the majority of the game, really the whole game, so being able to play against that competition, get used to it, get adjusted, was helpful. 

“Still, obviously an adjustment period, just learning defensively, offensively, just trying to figure out where I fit in my role and just continuing to attack.”

Graves made only four of his 13 field-goal attempts, missing all five of his three-point shots, in the close loss to the Pistons. He said that teammates and coaching staff were encouraging after the poor shooting performance.

“My shot wasn’t falling, but they (tell me to) keep shooting. ‘We know you can shoot. We see you do it every day. We see you work so hard on it, so just keep shooting,'” said Graves. “I feel like leaning on my teammates has been big, and my support system with my family and everybody has been amazing.”

Rajakovic agreed that Graves — and Raptors fans — just have to trust the process.

“When players come, the first thing that they need to adjust is the speed of the game,” he said. “For them at the beginning, the game is happening at such a high speed, and they need to slow down in order to understand what’s going on around them. 

“I think the most important thing is for players, for media, for everybody to understand that it’s a process. It’s not something that we’re going to throw him out there and he’s going to have all the answers. It’s going to take time.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2026.