2021 NBA Draft — 4. Jalen Suggs, Toronto Raptors
The star of Gonzaga’s impressive run to the NCAA title game, Jalen Suggs is a hand-in-glove fit with Toronto’s roster. At 6-foot-4, he has enough size and bulk to share the floor with Fred VanVleet. Suggs is a competitive, strong-willed defender who does not shy away from big moments. On offense, he is much the same — a dynamic, show-stopping playmaker with the athleticism and floor vision to develop into a star at the next level.
Suggs can get downhill and zig side-to-side with the best of them. He’s a smart, quick-twitch ball-handler with massive potential out of the pick-and-roll. He’s a streaky long-range shooter, but that’s one of the few drawbacks. Toronto already has ample floor-spacing around him, and VanVleet could help ease him into the burden of NBA facilitating.
Toronto is probably better than last season’s record suggests. Suggs is a tremendous basketball player who can contribute to a winning situation right away. In fact, Suggs would doubtlessly help fill the seemingly inevitable void left by Kyle Lowry, who can (and will) leave in free agency.