NBA
#20 Toronto Raptors: Delon Wright
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
The Toronto Raptors decided to shore up their backcourt by taking guard Delon Wright out of Utah with the 20th pick.
Wright is a talented point guard, but can play some two-guard as well with his scoring ability, averaging 14.5 points and 5.1 assists last year at Utah. The 6’5′ guard is a solid three-point shooter, averaging 35 percent from distance last year, while also showing off a solid mid-range game and ability to get to the basket. His ball-handling will not only help him create space to score, but also draw defenses in for easy kick-out assists.
Known as a scorer coming out of high school, Wright made a nice transition as a point guard at Utah last season as well as taking on the leadership and go-to role for the team. His size will help him transition to the NBA, but he needs to add strength to compete against the more athletic, explosive point guards. In addition to his ability to score, Wright has also shown the play-making ability that should help him play with a variety of different lineups with the Raptors.
The younger brother of Blazers’ forward Dorell Wright, Delon should fit in nicely coming off the bench for Kyle Lowry and should be able to play alongside him as well.
There are concerns about Wright becoming a full-time point guard and he was known to disappear on offense at times for Utah when his shot wasn’t falling.
Wright still has a high ceiling after coming out of college as a sophomore and could conceivably develop into a talented sixth-man threat quickly. After making the playoffs two seasons in a row, the Raptors are adding a young offensive guard to their future core, who may be able to contribute as early as next season.
