TORONTO — Collin Murray-Boyles doesn't think it's his “welcome to the NBA” moment yet, but he'll never forget the first time he faced the Houston Rockets.
Murray-Boyles made the first start of his NBA career on Wednesday, playing center for the Toronto Raptors in a 139-121 loss to Houston. That meant playing defense against former leading scorer Kevin Durant, former star player Alperen Sengun, Jabari Smith Jr., backup center Steven Adams, all of whom stood over six-foot-ten.
“It’s a big challenge, especially early on, especially for this team, going against a team that’s really going to make the playoffs,” Murray-Boyles said. “You never know what kind of lineup you’re going to face every night.
“Fighting such a huge line showed us what we need to do better, what we did well and we can look and see how we can improve.”
Murray-Boyles was selected ninth overall by Toronto in this summer's NBA draft. The six-foot-seven 20-year-old has only played three games this season.
Related videos
While Durant — a reliable Hall of Famer who was named an All-Star 15 times — would theoretically be the Rockets' toughest player for Murray-Boyles to guard, it was Adams who caught his eye.
Get the latest national news
To stay on top of news affecting Canada and the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you as they happen.
“Steven Adams is insanely strong. My wrists are hurting right now. I'm trying to box him and wrestle him, but it's impossible,” Murray-Boyles said, rubbing his forearms. “I didn't think it was like that. No one comes out from behind his screens.
“I was asking him what his routine was like in the middle of the game. It's crazy. It's crazy. You have him and then you have to worry about him and KD. It's crazy what they got.”
Murray-Boyles' first NBA start was necessary because Jakob Poeltl, Toronto's regular starting center, was sidelined hours before the opener with lower back tightness. Murray-Boyles finished with 13 points and two assists in 25 minutes, briefly being benched after picking up four personal fouls.
“We needed to start Collin, Collin was only playing his third game and he started today,” Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic said. “Without Jak to help us rebound and control the paint and then do all that stuff, all the guys in our second unit are going to play different roles.
“(The Reserves) are still finding those combinations and how these guys can help each other. I think they have good energy. They really try in games like today, they're just smaller. They hit us on the glass.”
At various points throughout the evening, Houston was able to put five players on the floor taller than six-foot-ten, at least an inch taller than the six-foot-nine Sandro Mamukelashwii, Toronto's tallest healthy player.
The size advantage of Smith (6-11), Durant (6-10), Sengun (6-11), Adams (6-11) and Clint Capela (6-10) over the entire Raptors lineup allowed them to outshoot the hosts 53-22.
Houston also outscored the Raptors 66-36 in the paint, with the Rockets bench scoring 37 points while Toronto's reserves scored 23.
“That's what happens with it. You have to be more decisive,” Murray-Boyles said. “They sometimes had all five fail, we had three, two, but we never had all five fail.
“Part of that falls on me. But we have to be tougher on rebounds, try to be as physical as we can the whole game, not give them anything easy at the rim.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 29, 2025.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
