Toronto Raptors guard Immanuel Quickley made sure to give Jakob Poeltl his flowers for his contributions to the team during their strong start to the 2025-26 campaign, where they currently have a 15-7 record, good for second in the Eastern Conference standings.
“I’ve gotta give a shoutout to Jakob. He’s one of the best screen setters I’ve played with and is such an unselfish player,” Quickley said of Poeltl via Josh Lewenberg of TSN.
“He does so much stuff for us that doesn’t show up in the stat sheet. You’ve gotta give him a lot of credit. We appreciate him a lot,” he added.
The 30-year-old center averages 10.6 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 2.4 assists on 72.7 percent shooting from the field across 16 regular season appearances. Poeltl, who does the little things for the Toronto Raptors, posted 11 points, seven rebounds, and four assists on 5-for-7 shooting in yesterday’s 121-118 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Toronto Raptors News: Scottie Barnes wins Eastern Conference Defensive Player of the Month
Scottie Barnes became the first player in Toronto Raptors history to win the Eastern Conference Defensive Player of the Month after recording 64 “stocks” (steals and blocks). He was the only player in the league with at least 30 steals and 30 blocks during October to November.
“A big part of that is the work he’s putting in, dedication, studying the players, getting to know the league. It’s year five for him,” head coach Darko Rajakovic said of Barnes via Kai Gammage of Sportsnet. “He’s continuing to improve in every single aspect.”
“I think rim protection, his deflections, playing off the ball, and just roaming on defence, recognizing situations,” he continued. “He’s doing a really good job there, apart from being elite on the ball as well.”
