Raptors Rookie Recalls His ‘Welcome to the NBA’ Moment and Toughest Matchups

Toronto Raptors rookie Ja'Kobe Walter recalls his toughest matchups this season and the moment he realized the NBA is a different beast

Mar 23, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors guard Ja'Kobe Walter (14) takes a pass during warmups before a game against the San Antonio Spurs at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images | John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

It’s a rite of passage in the NBA.

Every rookie has a moment in their first season when they realize the league is a different world. They run into a screen and feel it. This isn’t college anymore. The opponents aren’t peers. These are seasoned professionals, grown men who know exactly what they’re doing.

For Toronto Raptors first-round pick Ja’Kobe Walter, that moment came on December 3, 2024, at home against Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers.

“I was starting out guarding Haliburton, and all game, the type of player he is, he likes to pitch and run off screens and stuff. Full-court screens and all that. I was just getting hit by screens all day,” Walter said as he reflected on his rookie campaign.

The tape wasn’t pretty.

Haliburton went 4-for-4 in the three minutes Walter guarded him that night, repeatedly springing free off screens Walter didn’t recognize in time.

“The next day, we was watching film. Every clip was me getting hit by a screen, and my teammates let me hear about it,” Walter said. “It made me start watching a lot more film on how to get through screens, how to navigate them, and it helped me a lot on defense.”

But Haliburton wasn’t the only challenge Walter faced this year.

Looking back on his first season, the other player who stands out is Orlando’s Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the two-time NBA champion and savvy veteran whom Walter spent more time defending than anyone else.

“He was coming off a lot of pindowns,” Walter said. “He’s a vet. He’s won in this league. So he got all the tricks.”

This time, though, Walter was more ready. He held his own against Caldwell-Pope, surrendering just four points in nearly 17 minutes of matchup time, according to NBA Stats.

Every rookie goes through learning moments like these. It’s part of the process. Walter took his lumps early, but he responded the right way. He put in the work, added nine pounds over the course of the season, and now he’s focused on what comes next.

The plan this summer is simple: get in the gym, keep building his body, and come back next season more experienced, stronger, and better prepared for the battles ahead.