Murray-Boyles evolving for larger role on Raptors

TORONTO – Toronto’s playoff run was brief last season, pushing the Cleveland Cavaliers to seven games in the first round, but rookie forward Collin Murray-Boyles was one of the brightest spots for the Raptors in that stretch.

The expectations are heightened for Toronto and Murray-Boyles this season, and he said that’s created a different feeling in the Raptors’ locker room.

“It’s a lot more serious, a lot more focused. Obviously, we want to get back there, and the preparation has already been started,” Murray-Boyles said after practice on Tuesday. “We’ve been locked in this whole summer, so just staying as mentally locked in as possible because it’s a long season.

“Trying to stay as locked in as possible to get to that position that we were in last year, and obviously, go further than where we were.”

Murray-Boyles averaged 8.5 points, five rebounds, 1.9 assists, 0.9 blocks and 0.9 steals per regular-season game in 2025-26. His usage shot up from 21.9 minutes per game to 27.3 in the playoffs against Cleveland, and so did his other stats: 14.4 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.1 blocks per game.

He had six points, eight rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block over 20 minutes of play in a lopsided 135-92 win over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday in Toronto’s home opener. The Raptors had such a large lead over the Bulls that head coach Darko Rajakovic rested all of his starters and key bench players like Murray-Boyles for the closing minutes of the game.

Murray-Boyles will likely play more minutes on Friday when Toronto (1-0) visits the Washington Wizards (1-0) in what should be a more evenly contested game.

The six-foot-seven power forward knows that his role will evolve over the course of this season. Until the Raptors are able to acquire more bigs, Murray-Boyles is considered the second option at power forward behind all-star Scottie Barnes and the backup to starting centre Jakob Poeltl.

“I know the plan that Darko and the rest of the coaching staff have for me, what my teammates expect from me, and that’s just very high expectations,” said Murray-Boyles after practice at OVO Athletic Centre. “There are some things I need to clean up from pre-season, whether it’s defence, just sticking with what I’ve been good at, and also just building on that as the season goes on.

“I’m not going to be perfect at the start of the season. But I’m just trying to be as locked in and as focused on doing what coach is telling me to do at all times.”

Rajakovic said after Wednesday’s game that Murray-Boyles played well against Chicago but that he needs the 21-year-old to continue to be aggressive, especially on defence.

“He is a unique player. He plays with a lot of force. That’s the recipe for his success,” said Rajakovic. “When he does that on the defensive end, it translates to every part of his game. We need him to be the same force, have the same aggressiveness on the offensive side, with his rolls, with his drives.

“He needs to be a player who’s going to be finishing above the rim and playing with force.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2026.