NBA Draft 2017: The pre-draft workouts in Toronto continue

The NBA Draft waits for no man. Today at the BioSteel centre, the Raptors are back at it again with two new prospects and a rigorous morning workout. Who’s in Toronto today you ask?

Here are the names:

Tyler Cavanaugh, Forward, 6-9, George Washington

TJ Leaf, Forward, 6-10, UCLA

The big name here is obvious: Leaf. He’s been consistently ranked in the low to mid-20s on most mock drafts, and Draft Express’ list is no different. He’s in at no. 26 on their Top 100 Prospects list, and in their latest mock they’ve got Leaf going to the Raptors at 23. No lie.

Leaf is 20 years old, coming of a freshman season with UCLA (and top prospect Lonzo Ball) in which he averaged 16.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.1 blocks in 30 minutes per game. And, look at that, despite being 6’10” in shoes, Leaf also shot 47 percent from 3 on 1.7 attempts per game. It’s almost as if the Raptors are keying in on big men who can shoot, pass and move.

If you read the DX profile of Leaf, you’ll see a lot of mention of versatility on the offensive end, his ability to stretch the floor, and his passing talent. Leaf’s ability to play defense at an NBA-level is still very much an open question, but who cares if you can just blast away on offense? There’s also no word yet on how intimidating a frontline of Jakob Poeltl and T.J. Leaf will be for all future oppositions. Start mentally preparing yourself now.

Finally, not to shortchange Cavanaugh here, but the 6’9”, 23-year-old forward is not on any draft boards or rankings right now. He’s in there to grind. Good luck to him.