Raptors Said to Have Interviewed Intriguing Forward From Akron

The Toronto Raptors have reportedly interviewed Akron forward Enrique Freeman who profiles as someone the organization could add as an undrafted free agent following the draft

Akron's Enrique Freeman (25) whips the first piece of the net after the Zips defeated Kent State in the Mid-American Conference Tournament championship game Saturday in Cleveland. / Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Toronto Raptors appear to be keeping tabs on Akron forward Enrique Freeman.

The 23-year-old is certainly not a traditional NBA draft prospect. He was a total unknown coming out of high school who walked on for the Zips after earning a spot at a tryout open to the public. At the time, he was 6-foot-4, according to Cleveland.com, without any thought of ever earning an NBA spot.

But over the past five years, Freeman has grown to over 6-foot-7 and has turned himself into a fringe draft prospect and someone Toronto has reportedly interviewed ahead of next month’s draft, Sarah Todd of the Deseret News wrote.

Freeman went from playing 13 total minutes as a freshman to becoming an 18.6 points-per-game scorer as a fifth-year senior. He led NCAA basketball with 12.9 rebounds per game while shooting 58.4% from the field and 37% on 1.5 three-point attempts per game.

Defensively, Freeman is special. He’s a four-time Mid-American Conference All-Defensive team award winner, was the MAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2022, and won the conference’s Player of the Year overall this past season. He’s long and versatile and with a little more strength, he profiles as a typical wing defender who should be able to hold his own in most matchups.

There are more questions about Freeman’s offensive repertoire, though. He’s never really been a good free throw shooter and until this past year, he’d never taken more than three three-pointers in a season. He’s mostly done his scoring in the post where he’s a pretty good finisher inside, but it’s tough to see that translating to the NBA level considering his size.

There’s also the issue of Freeman’s upside.

He’s had a remarkable journey to this point and his past developmental successes suggest he’s a hard worker who is willing to learn. But Freeman is the same age as RJ Barrett, for example, and older prospects are typically viewed as having a lower upside compared to the unknown players earlier in their college careers.

Toronto does have a need for a wing defender with some size like Freeman but taking the Ohio native at No. 31 might be a bit of a reach. That said, the Raptors have a track record of diving into the undrafted free agency market right when the draft ends and it wouldn’t be surprising to see Toronto make a call to Freeman’s agent if he does indeed fall out of the draft later this summer.