Candice Ward-USA TODAY Sports
Easy To See Why Raptors Have Spoken to Arkansas' Anthony Black
The Toronto Raptors seldom tip their pick ahead of the NBA Draft but if you’re paying close enough attention you might catch a name or two.
Take 2020, for example. The Raptors worked out plenty of players including Malachi Flynn — as was reported at the time — who seemed like the type of player Toronto was targeting heading into the draft. A year later, Scottie Barnes admitted to interviewing with the Raptors ahead of Toronto’s shocking decision to pick him ahead of Jalen Suggs.
The first name to leak this draft season is Arkansas’ Anthony Black who said he either has or will interview with the Raptors along with Chicago, Minnesota, Utah, Houston, San Antonio, Charlotte, Portland, Denver, Indiana, New Orleans, Oklahoma City, and Washington, per The Athletic’s Josh Robbins.
Black is a 6-foot-7 freshman guard who averaged 12.8 points, 3.9 assists, and 5.1 rebounds while shooting 45.5% from the field and 30.1% on 2.6 three-point attempts per game. Defensively, he’s considered among the best perimeter stoppers in the draft class with the kind of size and strength to switch across multiple positions.
“With elite size for a guard, Black has the perfect build for the modern NBA. He’s a natural lead guard that can also play off-ball on the wing. He’s the ideal prospect for the positionless game that the NBA is trending towards. Black is a player that relies more on skill than athleticism,” according to Sports Illustrated.
“He’s a great facilitator and can lead an effective offense. With that in mind, he needs to get better as a scorer to round out his offensive game. Regardless, tall playmakers are in high demand at the NBA level and he’s the type of player that would fit on nearly any team.
“Many of the other top guards in this class are elite scorers. While Black can get his team a bucket, it's unclear whether he can be a top offensive option early in his NBA career. He’s more of a pass-first guard that prefers to set up his teammates. In fact, sometimes he’s so unselfish that it actually impacts him negatively.”
Reading too much into draft interviews is often a fool’s errand but it’s noteworthy that Black is widely expected to be selected before Toronto’s No. 13 pick. The Athletic has him going at No. 9 in their mock draft with a draft pick range of “No. 5 to No. 12.” CBS’ latest mock drafts similarly have him pegged for No. 6 and No. 9.
Typically, teams use these pre-draft opportunities to speak to players they otherwise would never have a chance to talk to. It’s in part why the Raptors elected to speak to Bennedict Mathurin and other top lottery picks last year despite only having a second-round pick.
Black doesn’t have the shooting traits Toronto should be targeting with their first-round pick this year, but the draft is rarely about draft for fit and far more often about finding talent. In that sense, Black makes sense for the Raptors if the organization is lucky enough to see him fall to No. 13.
Further Reading
Could the Raptors swing a deal with Portland for the No. 3 pick?
Raptors can't get lucky, staying put at 13th pick in NBA draft lottery
Here's what to know as Raptors enter NBA Draft Lottery with 13th-best odds
