Restricted free agent Immanuel Quickley agrees to 5-year, $175 million contract with Raptors: report

Restricted free agent guard Immanuel Quickley has agreed to a five-year, $175 million contract to remain with the Toronto Raptors, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

The 25th pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, Quickley spent his first 3 1/2 seasons with the New York Knicks, primarily serving as a spark-plug combo guard off the bench for head coach Tom Thibodeau. He became a fan favorite at Madison Square Garden due to his speed in transition, quick-trigger launch from 3-point land, excellent point-of-attack and help-side defense, and a tendency to help tilt games whenever he checked in. Became a favourite.

There was also skipping:

New York’s net rating was 8.1 points per 100 better than Quickley’s in 2020-21, 12.2 points per 100 better in 2021-22 and 8.5 points per 100 better in 2022-23 – a breakout third season in which the Kentucky product posted a 45. Averaged 14.9 points in 28.9 minutes per game with 4.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1 steal on 37/82 shooting splits and finished second in Sixth Man of the Year voting. (Full disclosure: I included him on my ballot in the first place.)

Quickley’s per-minute/per-possession production and sterling advanced analytical profile suggest he was a player who, given the early minutes and heavy workload, could prove to be a star hidden in plain sight. But with Jalen Brunson having established himself as a bona fide superstar in New York — and Thibodeau clearly being uncomfortable with the defensive shortcomings of pairing two smaller guards, despite stellar lineup data for this tandem — it doesn’t seem likely. The hope was that Quickly would get that kind of opportunity for Runway on Broadway. And as his looming restricted free agency approached a high-cost decision on his future, the Knicks decided to part ways with Quickley, sending him to Toronto along with forward RJ Barrett in exchange for 3-and-D wing OG Anunoby. Gave. reserve big man Precious Achiuwa and backup guard Malachi Flynn (who later bowled one of the most random 50 balls in NBA history).

Much of the attention and analysis after the trade focused on the role Anunoby played in turning the Knicks into a 50-win team that, briefly, looked like a title contender. However, on the other side of the swap, Quickley stepped into duty as a starting point guard for the first time, averaging nearly 35 more touches per game as a Raptor than he did as a Knicks and increasing his average of possessions. Almost doubled the time.

In his first attempt to handle shot-making duties on a team without offensive talent, he felt stressed at times. The Raptors scored just 112.6 points per 100 possessions with Quickley on the court, which is right in line with Toronto’s 24th-ranked full-season offensive efficiency mark.

However, for the most part? Quickly saw the part:

In 38 starts for a Raptors team struggling to find a new normal after moving longtime lynchpins Anunoby and Pascal Siakam in an effort to rebuild around new cornerstone Scottie Barnes, Quickley averaged 18.6 points in 33.3 minutes per game. , averaged 6.8 assists and 4.8 rebounds. He shot 39.5% from 3-point land on 7.1 attempts per game and 84.1% from the free-throw line on four attempts a night. His assist rate increased, dwarfing his teammates’ career-best 29.5% of baskets. Their turnover rate remained low, coughing up just over 10% of the possessions they used.

Only four players in the NBA averaged at least 15 points per game over the course of an entire season, while having an assist rate so high and a turnover rate so low. The list: MVP finalist Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, All-NBA selection (and Quickley’s former teammate) Brunson, NBA champion Jamal Murray… and longtime Toronto triggerman Fred VanVleet, into whose role Quickley stepped into with the revamped Raptors .

The 6-foot-3 guard has room for improvement. One look at the standings makes it clear that those strong individual stats don’t necessarily translate neatly into wins; According to Cleaning the Glass, Toronto went 12-26 in Quickley’s 38 starts and allowed 5.7 points per 100 minutes.

As Quickley’s usage increased, his scoring efficiency declined, especially inside the arc; He shot just 34.8% between the restricted area and the 3-point line in Toronto, and while he shot a strong 70% at the rim after joining the Raptors, he has struggled to generate shots in the Cup throughout his career Is. (The increased patience in maintaining live dribbles that he showed on drives later in the season could be a big help there.) He also needs to get more comfortable dealing with the kind of blitzes and traps that make for a great pull-up. Up is 3-point. The shooter and downhill driver must serve as full-time lead guards. He must also develop the conditioning and consistency that will allow him to remain a helpful defensive contributor while carrying the heavy lifting on the offensive end.

However, broadly speaking, the early returns on the big ideas behind the deal – Let’s try to find a good partner for our huge all-star point forward And We think this lightning-fast sixth man can move – Were pretty solid. Throughout the season, the Raptors went on to score 528 points in just under 4,000 minutes. However, in those 600 minutes that Barnes and Quickly shared the stage? He was plus-15.

This is not a guarantee of future greatness, but it is Is A good place to start. Heading into last season, the roster is full of All-Stars, with players averaging 19 points, four rebounds and four assists per 36 minutes on league-average-or-better true shooting through their first four campaigns; Quickly is now on that list. It remains to be seen whether the recently turned 25 will join his predecessors in capturing the league’s highest honour. However, this new deal means he will have the opportunity to earn his place at their company.