TORONTO — The 2025 recruiting class is excellent. It's early days, but the early results are that he will easily rank among the top classes of the last decade, and maybe more.
Cooper Flagg proves he's a worthy number one, putting up teen numbers that only LeBron James can match. Duke teammate Con Knueppel, who Charlotte took fourth overall, is already playing like a 10-year veteran and is on pace to break rookie 3-point shooting records. The No. 2 pick, Dylan Harper, is helping the San Antonio Spurs achieve competitive status ahead of schedule, while third overall pick VJ Edgecomb is a key contributor to the surging Philadelphia 76ers. And so on. The New Orleans Pelicans look like they landed a pair of gems in Derick Queen and Jeremy Fiers at No. 12 and No. 7, respectively. There are players with important roles taken late in the first round and early in the second.
“Everyone is finding their niche,” he said Monday night after his crucial role in the Raptors' convincing 118-100 victory over the road Atlanta Hawks, referring to the rest of the rookie class. “Everyone makes an impact on the team they choose… we're proud of what we've accomplished so far.”
Murray-Boyles did not receive the recognition that some of his colleagues received. He doesn't appear on NBA.com's rookie rankings. When influential podcaster Zach Lowe selected rookies for his first and second teams mid-season, Murray-Boyles was not on either one.
That situation could change quickly if Murray-Boyles continues to play at the level he's been at lately, culminating in one of the most impressive all-around performances you'll ever see from a first-year player in a Raptors uniform.
Making just his sixth career start, Murray-Boyles finished the game with 17 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, three steals and two blocks, committing no turnovers and shooting 8-of-10 from the field. According to basketball-reference.com, there hasn't been a rookie since 1991 who has posted a 17-7-7-3-2 formation without a turnover. Barring losses, the only rookies to cross that threshold in the last decade are Amen Thompson, Victor Wembanyama and Lonzo Ball.
The victory improved the Raptors' record to 22-15 and solidified them into fourth place in the East before they play seven of their next nine games on the road. The Hawks fell to 17-21.
But the boxing result, as impressive as it was, doesn't really reflect his night's work.
Murray-Boyles has made positive plays, big and small, time and time again. It is so simple and so difficult at the same time.
Although the Raptors won the game fairly easily and went on to beat the Hawks 4-0 in the season series in the process, there were some tense moments in Game 4. Atlanta cut its lead from 14 points early in the period to seven with 5:19 left.
Dyson Daniels, the Hawks' giant point guard, drove to his left as Murray-Boyles advanced next to him with his 6-foot-7, 230-pound frame, rising to successfully counter his layup, forcing a wild miss that turned into a 3-point play for Scottie Barnes (18 points, eight rebounds, 10 assists) at the other end.
A little later in the quarter with the Raptors still leading in singles, Murray-Boyles somehow got a loose ball against Daniels, who is one of the NBA's leading ballhawks. The Raptors rookie immediately fed the ball to a wide open Brandon Ingram (19 points, nine rebounds, three assists), who hit a three to put Toronto ahead by 11, effectively iceing the game with 2:44 left.
There were many more examples: the screen he set to free Ingram for a layup, the well-timed dodge. He helped Hawks star Jalen Johnson score 13 points on 5-of-15 shooting to go along with six turnovers. Not included was when Murray-Boyles defended Johnson on an infield play with only a few seconds remaining on the shot clock. As soon as Johnson caught the pass, Murray-Boyles swallowed it whole, grabbing the ball and leaving Johnson helpless as the shot clock expired.
Rookies must be overwhelmed with NBA play and defensive responsibilities. Murray-Boyles excels and is one of the best defenders on the team.
“I'm pretty sure our defensive numbers are better when he's on the floor,” Barnes said. “…he reads great, he does it all.”
His veteran teammates have admired his physical strength since training camp. That's one reason he's averaged more than four offensive rebounds per game over the last seven games while averaging 25 minutes of playing time. He showed it when he tackled huge Hawks center Onyeka Okongwu and stopped him for one contested rebound, forcing a jump ball that Murray-Boyles won.
He was also impressive at times, such as when he caught the ball under the basket on a break and in one motion turned 360 degrees to hit Grady Dick (11 points and two steals on 4-for-4 shooting) in the corner for a three.
At this point, it's too early to fully evaluate what the Raptors have in their prized 2025 rookie. So it's unfair for the rest of the NBA to jump on Murray-Boyles, who has missed time due to injury and illness and is averaging 7.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists (while shooting 54 percent from the floor and 40 percent from three) while playing 19 minutes per game.
But the more you watch him, the more obvious it becomes that he is the type of player who can impact games with his energy, athleticism, intelligence and drive on both ends of the floor.
What this will ultimately look like remains an open question.
“A common mistake is that when a player comes in, you already have an idea of what he should be,” Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic said. “Sometimes us coaches just try to box them in. Obviously, there's a role and there's things you need to do. There are things you need to learn. We're constantly learning about Collin, what he can do, how he learns, how he picks things up. It's really impressive, his development. The opportunity that he's taking advantage of right now, he's doing some impressive things for us.”
Murray-Boyles isn't thinking about anything right now. He's very willing to play hard and let his instincts succeed.
“If you're not tired, you're not trying hard enough, so I try to be as tired as possible,” he said after playing a career-high 31 minutes.
And his seemingly unerring ability to catch loose balls, rebound the ball, grab offensive rebounds, steal and block stray shots?
“Mostly just not having hands around you helps a lot,” he said. “Just by being active and raising your hands, your life becomes easier.”
What about the ability to hold your own, or even get ahead, while fighting for either the ball, position, or both, against larger, older, more experienced athletes?
Is he surprised that his physical style transferred so easily from college basketball?
“No, I’m lifting,” he said. “No cockiness. But I tried my best to prepare for this moment, to prepare to play against the best of the best. I mean it's a big physical aspect and I feel like I'm preparing as much as I can and I'm still trying to get stronger every day.”
Everything works. Ability, fitness and feel for the game even at NBA speed. This may not result in Murray-Boyles winning Rookie of the Year or even earning a spot on an all-rookie team when the season ends.
But it's hard to watch him play — especially after games like he played Monday — and not believe the Raptors got a player in the 2025 draft who can help them win NBA games now and in the future.
Trad Young? On Saturday night, I was chatting with a member of the Hawks' front office in the tunnel leading to the visitors' locker room at Scotiabank Arena when Trae Young walked up to the ramp. The executive apologized, gave the Hawks' star point guard a big, warm hug and the two exchanged a few friendly words before Young, who sat out both of the Hawks' games in Toronto because of a bruise on his thigh, went to change his clothes and begin pregame practice. Around the same time Monday afternoon, the biggest thing in NBA news was that Young (and his agents) were “I’m working with a franchise on a deal.” Translation: The Hawks decided that life without the 27-year-old, a four-time All-Star who made $46 million this year and has a $49 million player option next season, was better than life with him. At the same time, Young and his agents realized that they would not get an extension from Atlanta, so it was better to try to find a team willing to extend his current contract. No hard feelings. Why do the Hawks want to move on? Among other things, he is a very costly defensive liability (the Hawks are giving up nearly 10 more points per game in the 10 games he has played than in the 27 games he missed through Monday). It's no coincidence that the Hawks are 2-8 with Young in the lineup and 15-12 when he's not. They believe they can better use that money elsewhere to bolster their promising young squad.
Should the Raptors get involved? It doesn't hurt to ask. But making a deal is not so easy. Raptors point guard Immanuel Quickley, who is making $32.5 million this year and the next three years, could be a starting point. And while Quickley has had some good moments this season, he's hardly taken the point guard role and ran with it. He was moved in favor of sophomore guard Jamal Sheed late in the fourth quarter against the Hawks. This is the second time in the past two weeks that Rajakovic has chosen to finish a game with Sheed rather than Quickley. As spotty as Young's reputation may be as an unreliable teammate, a defensive black hole and a shaky up-and-coming shooter (35 percent from three on nearly eight attempts per game), his impressive play (10.5 per game over the last five seasons) could be an improvement on Cookley's game. So yeah, just like trading for Brandon Ingram last season was a low-risk bet on talent with some warts that worked out well, you can see where the Raptors can talk themselves into doing this.
But can they? Here's the problem: Quickley's contract cannot be changed right now without meaningful compensation for the pick. One of the reasons the Hawks want to get out of the Trae Young business is because they don't want to pay the small point guard significant money to take the ball away from Johnson and Daniels, who they view as building blocks. When I spoke with some league officials on Monday, one thing I was told to keep in mind regarding reports of the Wizards being a potential destination for the Hawks is that Washington could make a deal with useful veterans on expiring contracts – say, Khris Middleton and C.J. McCollum. This could help the Hawks in the playoffs this season, as well as work their way into enough cap space to make an offer for a big man like Dallas' Anthony Davis next summer without having to chew through their draft capital or young talent as a season-long trade would. So even if the Raptors decide they're at the point where they want to send out draft picks to acquire Young, they don't have the expiring contracts the Hawks are looking for anyway.
