The Toronto Raptors announced Thursday they have signed free-agent forward DeMarre (Deh-MAHR-ay) Carroll to a multi-year contract. Per team policy, financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“We are thrilled with not only the skills but the intangibles DeMarre will bring to our team,” said Raptors President and General Manager Masai Ujiri. “He is a hard-nosed player who plays with passion and commitment on both ends of the floor.”
Carroll, 6-foot-8, 215 pounds, averaged a career-high 12.6 points, with 5.3 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 31.3 minutes in 70 contests (69 starts) last season with the Atlanta Hawks. He also posted career bests in field goal percentage (.487), three-point field goal percentage (.395), field goals made (318), three-point field goals made (120) and free throws made (127). He finished third in the NBA in steals-to-turnover ratio (1.25) and fourth in both two-point field goal percentage (.567, 198-349) and effective field goal percentage (.579).
Carroll, along with the four other starters on the Hawks, was named Eastern Conference Player of the Month for January. He averaged 12.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 31.5 minutes in 14 games. The Hawks posted the best calendar month in NBA history with a 17-0 record.
Carroll scored in double figures 55 times with a career-high 26 points (9-13 FG, 2-3 3FG, 6-6 FT) February 9 at Minnesota. He had 23 games with seven-or-more rebounds, including a career high-tying 12 rebounds March 18 at Golden State. He registered four steals on four occasions.
In the 2015 postseason, Carroll averaged 14.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 34.9 minutes in 16 outings (16 starts). He shot .403 (29-72) from three-point range. He scored 20-or-more points in seven contests, including a stretch of six consecutive games (April 25 – May 5). He recorded a career postseason high of 25 points (9-14 FG, 3-5 3FG, 4-5 FT) in Game 6 at Washington.
In 316 career regular season games (164 starts), Carroll has averaged 7.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 21.6 minutes. He has played with Memphis (2009-11), Houston (2010-11), Denver (2011-12), Utah (2011-13) and the Hawks (2013-15).
Carroll was drafted 27th overall by Memphis in the first-round of the 2009 NBA Draft. He split his college career between Vanderbilt and Missouri. He averaged 16.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.6 steals in 38 games during his senior season at Missouri.