Toronto native Dalano Banton made history Thursday night, becoming the first Canadian basketball player ever to get drafted by the Toronto Raptors when the team took him in the second round, 46th overall.
The redshirt sophomore out of Nebraska features length and versatility that that makes him an intriguing project for the Raptors’ vaunted player development program, and the fact that he’s also a hometown kid is just icing on the cake.
“This is a perfect example why you have BioSteel [All Canadian Games]. That’s the first time I saw the kid play, right? We all watched him there and have continued to follow him,” said Raptors general manager Bobby Webster after the draft concluded in the wee hours of Friday morning. “To draft the first Canadian kid, I’m sure, was cool for all of us to hear on the broadcast, ‘Toronto Raptors select Dalano Banton from Toronto,’ right? That’ll probably go down for a while.
“But really talented, a bit of a roundabout way for him but that’s never deterred us in the past, because we think he’s talented, he’s big, he plays a little point guard, he sees the floor really well, can rebound really well. He was invited to the G League camp this year in Chicago and didn’t make it to the NBA camp, but maybe that was a benefit to us.
“Local kid, I think Rexdale, so shoutout to Rexdale, and I’m sure they’re all really excited for him and we’ll see what he can do.”
Here’s a little more on Banton and why the Raptors opted to make him the first Canadian the organization’s ever drafted.
First of all, in case the Scottie Barnes pick at No. 4 – in addition to players like OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam on the roster – wasn’t already a good indicator, then the Raptors opting to take a chance on Banton is as telltale sign of the kind of player the organization values the most above all others.
That is to say, the Raptors seem to really like long, versatile and positionless players, so to speak.
Banton fits this description to a tee, as his natural position is as a point guard, but because he sprouted up to six-foot-nine he became more a forward with point-guard skills
Adept already in the pick-and-roll and, because of his height advantage, blessed with ability to make passes other smaller guards simply can’t, Banton figures to be an ideal facilitator and initiator of the Raptors’ offence.
Additionally, despite his slender frame, he isn’t afraid to crash the glass against bigger bodies, and when he gets a defensive rebound, because of his tight handle and his strong decision-making, he can instantly start a one-man fastbreak.
Lastly, because of his length and his athletic ability, Banton could mold into a decent multi-positional defender, possibly with the ability to defend four positions down the line.
These are all attributes that the Raptors have proven to value over the years and have become adept at developing players in a similar mold – like Siakam.
So, at 46, this seems like a safe bet on a good Canadian story from the Raptors.
Needs to improve his shooting stroke and add strength
Of course, as is the case with most second-round picks, Banton is far from a complete product, and will need to work hard to shore up at least two areas if he’s going to stick around in the NBA for a long while.
First and foremost, Banton is going to need to put on some extra strength and weight. A large part of the versatility he could bring to the table will probably hinge on his ability to guard at least two through four, and right now he doesn’t have the body to bang with power forwards.
The advantage Banton could bring would likely come as a small-ball four, but right now he just doesn’t have the size to do so.
He doesn’t have the shooting stroke to be a threat as a floor-spacing big man, either.
Banton shot just 20-for-81 from deep in 27 games played with the Cornhuskers last season and was just a 65.9 per cent free-throw shooter.
This is an indication that Banton isn’t much of a shooter and has a lot of work to do to even become an average one.
Can he do it? We’ll just have to wait and see.
Has his own ‘Bet on himself’ story
Banton is among one of the best stories in the 2021 draft.
Earlier this week I caught up with him and some members of his representation to learn why he decided to bet on himself.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — DeMar DeRozan scored 27 points in a record-setting performance and the Sacramento Kings beat the Toronto Raptors 122-107 on Wednesday night.
Domantas Sabonis added 17 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds for his third triple-double of the season for Sacramento. He shot 6 for 6 from the field and 5 for 5 at the free-throw line.
Keegan Murray chipped in with 22 points and 12 rebounds, and De’Aaron Fox scored 21.
The 35-year-old DeRozan has scored at least 20 points in each of his first eight games with the Kings, breaking a franchise mark established by Chris Webber when he reached 20 in his first seven games with Sacramento in 1999.
DeRozan spent the past three seasons with the Chicago Bulls. The six-time All-Star also has played for Toronto and San Antonio during his 16-year NBA career.
RJ Barrett had 23 points to lead the Raptors. Davion Mitchell scored 20 in his first game in Sacramento since being traded to Toronto last summer.
Takeaways
Raptors: Toronto led for most of the first three quarters before wilting in the fourth. The Raptors were outscored 33-14 in the final period.
Kings: Fox played strong defense but struggled again shooting from the floor as he is dealing with a finger injury. Fox went 5 for 17 and just 2 of 8 on 3-pointers. He is 5 for 25 from beyond the arc in his last three games.
Key moment
The Kings trailed 95-89 early in the fourth before going on a 9-0 run that gave them the lead for good. DeRozan started the spurt with a jumper, and Malik Monk scored the final seven points.
Key stat
Sabonis had the eighth game in the NBA since at least 1982-83 with a triple-double while missing no shots from the field or foul line. The previous player to do it was Josh Giddey for Oklahoma City against Portland on Jan. 11.
Up next
Raptors: At the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday night, the third stop on a five-game trip.
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Whitecaps are one win away from moving on to the next round of the Major League Soccer playoffs.
To get there, however, the Whitecaps will need to pull off the improbable by defeating the powerhouse Los Angeles FC for a second straight game.
Vancouver blanked the visitors 3-0 on Sunday to level their best-of-three first-round playoff series at a game apiece. As the matchup shifts back to California for a decisive Game 3 on Friday, the Whitecaps are looking for a repeat performance, said striker Brian White.
“We take the good and the bad from last game, learn from what we could have done better and go to LAFC with confidence and, obviously, with a whole lot of respect,” he said.
“We know that we can go there and give them a very good fight and hopefully come away with a win.”
The winner of Friday’s game will face the No. 4-seed Seattle Sounders in a one-game Western Conference semifinal on Nov. 23 or 24.
The ‘Caps finished the regular season eighth in the west with a 13-13-8 record and have since surprised many with their post-season play.
First, Vancouver trounced its regional rivals, the Portland Timbers, 5-0 in a wild-card game. Then, the squad dropped a tightly contested 2-1 decision to the top-seeded L.A. before posting a decisive home victory on Sunday.
Vancouver has scored seven goals this post-season, second only to the L.A. Galaxy (nine). Vancouver also leads the league in expected goals (6.84) through the playoffs.
No one outside of the club expected the Whitecaps to win when the Vancouver-L. A. series began, said defender Ranko Veselinovic.
“We’ve shown to ourselves that we can compete with them,” he said.
Now in his fifth season with the ‘Caps, Veselinovic said Friday’s game will be the biggest he’s played for the team.
“We haven’t had much success in the playoffs so, definitely, this is the one that can put our season on another level,” he said.
This is the second year in a row the Whitecaps have faced LAFC in the first round of the playoffs and last year, Vancouver was ousted in two straight games.
The team isn’t thinking about revenge as it prepares for Game 3, White said.
“More importantly than (beating LAFC), we want to get to the next round,” he said. “LAFC’s a very good team. We’ve come up against them a number of times in different competitions and they always seem to get the better of us. So it’d be huge for us to get the better of them this time.”
Earning a win last weekend required slowing L.A.’s transition game and limiting offensive opportunities for the team’s big stars, including Denis Bouanga.
Those factors will be important again on Friday, said Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini, who warned that his team could face a different style of game.
“I think the most important thing is going to be to match their intensity at the beginning of the game,” he said. “Because I think they’re going to come at us a million miles per hour.”
The ‘Caps will once again look to captain Ryan Gauld for some offensive firepower. The Scottish attacking midfielder leads MLS in playoff goals with five and has scored in all three of Vancouver’s post-season appearances this year.
Gearing up for another do-or-die matchup is exciting, Gauld said.
“Knowing it’s a winner-takes-all kind of game, being in that kind of environment is nice,” he said. “It’s when you see the best in players.”
LAFC faces the bulk of the pressure heading into the matchup, Sartini said, given the club’s appearances in the last two MLS Cup finals and its 2022 championship title.
“They’re supposed to win and we are not,” the coach said. “But it’s beautiful to have a little bit of pressure on us, too.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
Each PWHL team operated under its city name, with players wearing jerseys featuring the league’s logo in its inaugural season before names and logos were announced last month.
The Toronto Sceptres, Montreal Victoire, Ottawa Charge, Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost and New York Sirens will start the PWHL’s second season on Nov. 30 with jerseys designed to reflect each team’s identity and to be sold to the public as replicas.
Led by PWHL vice-president of brand and marketing Kanan Bhatt-Shah, the league consulted Creative Agency Flower Shop to design the jerseys manufactured by Bauer, the PWHL said Thursday in a statement.
“Players and fans alike have been waiting for this moment and we couldn’t be happier with the six unique looks each team will don moving forward,” said PWHL senior vice president of business operations Amy Scheer.
“These jerseys mark the latest evolution in our league’s history, and we can’t wait to see them showcased both on the ice and in the stands.”
Training camps open Tuesday with teams allowed to carry 32 players.
Each team’s 23-player roster, plus three reserves, will be announced Nov. 27.
Each team will play 30 regular-season games, which is six more than the first season.
Minnesota won the first Walter Cup on May 29 by beating Boston three games to two in the championship series.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
