Gradey Dick Has Key Lessons Learned in Loss to Clippers

Gradey Dick didn’t mean James Harden any harm.

His closeout looked innocent. Dick’s hands were stretched high in the air, trying to show his verticality as he contested Harden’s three-point jump shot. Dick just made one mistake, closing out a step too close to Harden whose craftiness resulted in a foul against the Toronto Raptors rookie.

It happens.

In a bigger game, it would have been a huge error. It turned an eight-point game into an 11-point lead for the Los Angeles Clippers who got the ball back with the Flagrant 1 called. But this year, Toronto isn’t focused on wins and losses. A 127-107 loss to the Clippers doesn’t really hurt much. For the Raptors, it’s about the learning experiences.

"That's a moment when a rookie sees a Hall of Famer and ... until you go through it, it's hard to comprehend," Raptors coach Darko Rajaković said. "Definitely, he's going to see that clip at least 50 times until he sees Harden next time. So I believe it's not gonna happen again."

Rajaković didn’t seem fazed by the mistake. It was a coaching opportunity for his rookie first-round pick who he called over to discuss the closeout with while the referees reviewed the decision.

"I kinda knew what I did," Dick said. "I landed in his landing space and I kinda walked over to (Rajaković) with a smile. He had a smile too and when it's communication like that and it's positive, that definitely helps me as a player where I can personally learn like that. He knows that too."

Then came Dick’s teammates, first Chris Boucher who broke down his closeout technique while the lengthy review continued. When the players did return to the court, Thad Young walked over to share a few more tips with his 20-year-old teammate.

"It's great. It's like multiple coaches going around at one time," Dick said. "The stuff that they teach me not even in the games, but even in practices, is very special."

How did Dick respond?

The very next play scooped up a fumbled pass from Daniel Theis and threw an alley-oop pass to RJ Barrett in transition.

That’s how this season is going to go for Toronto as the organization leans into this rebuild. There will be low lights — plenty of them. And if things go well, there should be some highlights too.

"We’re learning on the fly. Like I cannot just count on the practice to be our time for improvement. Every timeout I'm literally talking about basics, how to switch, how to communicate, how to be in the right positions," Rajaković said. "Right now our wins are those small gains in small experiences that guys are improving, getting better at."

Lately, Dick has been one of those bright spots. He’s looked better in his latest call-up, relatively speaking at least.

At one point in the second quarter, he came over to help Boucher double-team Harden but forgot to raise his hands in defense. Rajaković jumped up and began coaching Dick mid-play, jumping up and down with his arms raised insisting Dick do the same.

Dick is still having those rookie moments, as expected. Russell Westbrook drove right through him in the first quarter, sending the 6-foot-6, 200-pound guard flying backward. But he did draw a charge on a very similar play against Norman Powell when the former Raptors tried to do the same against Dick in the paint.

"I thought I got it on Russ," Dick said. "I saw him going full speed and, you know, a little painful, but laid down the second one."

Dick finished the night with six points on 3-for-7 shooting with two assists including another alley-oop find to Boucher late in the third quarter.

But Toronto isn’t all-in on development quite yet. The 35-year-old Young played 24 minutes Friday and at times looked like Toronto’s best player. His offensive rebounding was phenomenal early and somehow the 16-year veteran is still getting it done, finishing the night with 12 points on 6-for-6 shooting with six rebounds.

Barnes’ night was a little less impressive as he’s still trying to get used to his new offensive role. Kawhi Leonard gave him a hard time for much of the evening. It wasn't until the fourth quarter when the game was largely out of reach that Barnes really came alive, scoring 14 of his 23 points in the final frame, finishing the night 9-for-21 from the field in 35 minutes.

In moments, though, that specialness did come through. Barnes somehow found Boucher with an unbelievable pass from his own three-point line that dropped perfectly into Boucher’s pocket under the hoop for two in transition. He also came around a screen in the first half and beat Leonard with a pull-up mid-range jumper before throwing down a one-handed slam on the next offensive possession.

Like Dick, and frankly the rest of this roster, it’s just going to take some time for this young group to gel and find their stride. Jordan Nwora made his Raptors debut and chipped in eight uneventful minutes. But the calendar turns to February and the trade deadline nears, these opportunities for the young players should only grow.

Up Next: Atlanta Hawks

The Raptors will now hit the road for a six-game road trip starting in Atlanta at 6 p.m. ET against Trae Young and the Hawks.