Why the Raptors paid Jamal Shead

From yesterday:

“The Toronto Raptors have Jamal Shead locked up on a deal that screams STEAL. Toronto and Shead have agreed to a three-year, $24 million extension, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports. For a team that needs guys who actually do the little things, this makes a lot of sense.

Shead was already a steal when the Raptors grabbed him 45th overall in 2024. Now they have done it again. The six-foot-one guard averaged 6.6 points and 5.4 assists last season, but his 354 assists off the bench tell you a lot more. That was the most in the NBA by a reserve and a Raptors franchise record.

Still, Shead is not really a box-score guy. You have to watch him to understand his worth. He is annoying…I mean that in the best possible way. Shead is constantly picking up full court, getting into ball handlers and making sure whoever is bringing the ball up the floor knows he is going to be there all night. Shead also took 66 of them last season, second-most in the NBA.

It is not hard at all to see some of Kyle Lowry in him. Lowry never seemed to care if he was going up against someone twice his size. If there was a loose ball, he was diving for it. If somebody was driving to the basket, Lowry was more than willing to put his body in the way. Shead has that same mentality.

He plays like every possession matters. Toronto could be up 40. Toronto could be down 40. It does not really matter. Shead is still going to fly around, pick up guards, and throw himself onto the floor. That kind of player gets noticed. And now, deservingly so, he is getting paid for it.

Shead has already shown he can handle more than a backup role. When Immanuel Quickley was out last season, Shead stepped in and ran the offence. He played all 82 games, too. For a 23-year-old guard, that is valuable. The defence is already there. The passing is there. The energy is definitely there. The next step is scoring.

If Shead becomes a more consistent offensive player, this $24 million contract could suddenly look really cheap. At worst, Toronto has a reliable backup point guard on a team-friendly deal. At best, the Raptors might have a starting-calibre guard making nowhere near starting-calibre money.

And if that happens, the Raptors have options. They can keep him. They can use him as a trade piece. They can let him continue developing and see where it goes. That is the beauty of locking up a young player before you know exactly what his ceiling is.”