DeMarre Carroll

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After 41 games stuck on the sidelines, DeMarre Carroll is ready to get back to business. One day after returning against the Atlanta Hawks, Carroll sat in the Raptors locker room knowing he would be resting in Friday’s game because it was a back-to-back, but feeling thankful all the same for the progress he’s made.

"It felt really good [to be out there against the Hawks]” Carroll said. “Really, really good. Just to be out there, be back on the court, get a sweat. Just to be able to touch the ball, it was great.”

Carroll played 14 minutes in his return on Thursday, finishing with five points, a rebound and four steals. Most importantly, he looked like his normal self, sneaking in for steals, crashing the boards trying to get offensive rebounds, and bringing energy on the defensive end of the floor. While it’s normal for players to be tentative when returning after a long layoff, Carroll didn’t have any apprehension about playing his usual game once he stepped onto the court.

“It didn’t even cross my mind,” he said. “I feel like if I can get out there on the court and just try to perform and play hard, just playing hard, it overwhelms a lot of those type of things. I just wanted to go out there and try to play as hard as I can and let the rest happen.”

When Carroll signed with Toronto in the offseason, he expected to be a key contributor. Missing much of this year has been extremely frustrating, but now that he’s gotten through the toughest parts of rehabbing, he’s chosen to focus on the silver lining in his situation.

“There’s a list of positives,” he said. “You can look at it from individual standpoint, looking at the game, [being on the sideline helps you to] understand it from a coach’s perspective. I’m selfless, I look at it from a bigger standpoint [as well]. It gives guys like Norman and [James Johnson] opportunities to go out there and show what they can do. This league, I know for a fact, going through what I went through, it’s nothing without opportunity. When your number is called you’ve got to take advantage of it. Having more guys and more depth is only going to help us in the long run so I feel like it’s a blessing in disguise from that aspect.”

In addition to getting to watch his teammates step up, Carroll also grew close with the team’s training staff during his recovery. Spending hours with them daily as he rehabbed forced him to look beyond basketball and see all of the things the training staff deals with on a daily basis.

Carroll says he and the staff did a wide range of activities to aid in his recovery. When he couldn’t run, he was in the pool. When he wasn’t in the pool, he was doing weight training, in addition to standard treatment and acupuncture.

“We did so much,” Carroll said. “I thank them because without them I probably wouldn’t be able to play yesterday. We put our heads together. Masai [Ujiri], I call him the best GM in the NBA because most GM’s don't do the things that he does. He lets you use other outlets to get better. I’m very fortunate and very thankful for that.”

Carroll credited Ujiri with making him feel comfortable while he was away from the team through daily texts and check ins. One teammate in particular became Carroll’s point man for anything going on with the team while he was away.

“My guy is CoJo,” Carroll said. “Cory Joseph, coming from San Antonio, me coming from Atlanta, we talk about the same similar things that Pop [Gregg Popovich] and Bud [Mike Budenholzer] did. He texts me every 30 minutes, but that’s my guy. I sit next to him on the plane. I feel like he’s one of those guys, kind of a Paul Millsap for me over here.”

As soon as Joseph was asked about Carroll, a huge smile spread across his face. The two didn’t know each other prior to signing with the Raptors, but a fast friendship was formed the day the two met.

“I was able to kick it off with him from the start,” Joseph said. “We have a lot of similarities. He has a big personality. We have fun. He’s a great dude and he has a great family.”

Whether it’s on the plane, in the locker room, or on the bench, the two are often huddled together, sharing stories and laughs. When Carroll was out, Joseph wanted to be sure he knew that everyone was thinking of him as he worked toward his return.

“Whenever your teammate is dealing with something, or something is happening and he’s not on the court, we’re missing him,” Joseph said. “Just to text him to see how he is, it’s deeper than basketball. Just to see how he’s doing as a person, it’s huge for me. I know if I was in that situation, it would feel more comfortable. You would feel liked, and wanted, and obviously we all want him to be back and we all care about his well being.”

Joseph’s instincts were right. Carroll credits the texts from his teammates with helping to lift his spirits and make the time away from the court easier.

“I think that’s the biggest thing,” he said. “Those type of things go a long way. I’m very fortunate of that and it only makes us close.”

Joseph is just happy to have his friend and teammate back doing what he loves to do.

“We were very, very happy to have him in Atlanta and he did great,” Joseph said. “We’re looking forward to him getting better and also for us having him with us.”

carroll-return-a-timely-one

Carroll Return A Timely One

The Toronto Raptors announced Wednesday forward DeMarre Carroll had arthroscopic surgery this morning on his right knee. The procedure was performed by Dr. David Altchek at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City. Carroll’s status will be updated as appropriate.

Carroll sat out Monday’s game at Cleveland with a swollen right knee. He had played in the previous five contests after missing nine games (December 7-22) with a right knee contusion.

Carroll has averaged 11.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 31.9 minutes in 23 games. He had a season-high 21 points on two occasions: October 30 at Boston and November 22 at the Los Angeles Clippers. The Raptors face the Brooklyn Nets tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Barclays Center (TSN/TSN1050 Toronto)

demarre-carroll-injury-update

DeMarre Carroll Injury Update

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SickKids Hospital Welcomes DeMarre

torjlopez

The Toronto Raptors didn’t waste any time switching gears. Following through on head coach Dwane Casey’s year-end availability comments that the team would go back to its defence-first roots, the team made a splash on the opening day of free agency, signing former Atlanta Hawks forward DeMarre Carroll. They followed up the Carroll signing by inking former Spurs guard and Canadian Cory Joseph to a deal.The team introduced Carroll and Joseph to media during a Thursday morning press conference at the Air Canada Centre where both players officially signed their contracts and sang the praises of the city and #WeTheNorth fan base.Drafted by the Memphis Grizzlies with the 27th overall pick in the 2009 draft, Toronto will be the sixth NBA team in as many years (not including a stint in the D-League in 2010) for Carroll. While he is excited about helping to build on what the team already has in place, it was how the franchise treated his family that made the decision to come to Toronto feel right almost immediately.“Real to me is including my family,” Carroll said. “Whenever you include someone’s family, that’s pretty real. They came to my house and introduced themselves and had negations not only with myself, but with my family. I felt like that was a big part that sold me. Beyond this basketball, all you have is family. I feel like they took me in as their family.”Raptors General Manager Masai Ujiri expressed his excitement over being able to secure the player they had targeted in free agency.“[This is] another special day for the Raptors family,” Ujiri said. “We want to welcome a player that we’ve always admired….A great human being we are bringing to our program and we feel very very privileged.”The Raptors went to see Carroll shortly after free agency began, a gesture that allowed him to know he was their priority.“It happened so quick,” Carroll said. “I had just got in from Aruba the night before. Teams wanted to meet with me 12 at night. I felt like I needed to get at least some kind of sleep. Toronto came in. We had a lengthy meeting. We kind of went back and forth. We got a deal done. Detroit was in the hotel waiting to have their meeting. I felt kind of bad to call those teams that I wasn’t going to visit. At the same time, it’s a business. I think the business of basketball is what’s best for the individual.”The Carroll-to-Toronto fit is one that both sides feel is best for all involved. Carroll is looking forward to playing for a defensive-minded coach in Dwane Casey and the team is thrilled to have a proper lockdown perimeter defender on its roster.During his session with the media, Carroll began with a lovely statement that showed how much Toronto’s faith in his game meant to him.“First I want to start off by thanking Masai, thanking the organization, thanking my beautiful wife right here just for this opportunity,” Carroll said. “Throughout my life I’ve been through a lot. As many of y’all may have read, I’ve been through lot of obstacles throughout my life. From being shot in college to having a liver condition, for an organization to take me under their wing and bring me here and look at me as a true part of this team [it] means a lot. “I don't take nothing for granted,” he continued. “Every time I step onto the court I play my hardest because this game is never promised to you. I lost my brother at an early age. I could go on on how many negatives have been in my life, but today, this is truly a positive. This is truly a positive to sit here before y’all and the city of Toronto and represent, put the city of Toronto across my chest, and go out and represent y’all. I’m going to do everything I can to try to help this team reach their goals and reach their achievements. Like I said before, I just want to thank every individual who is standing here who believed in me. Especially Masai, he’s seen me come from the bottom and make it to the top. I’m truly blessed and I would just like to say thank you.”While Carroll is the most high-profile of the signings after a fantastic season with the Eastern Conference leading Atlanta Hawks — including a standout postseason series against the Washington Wizards where he was arguably Atlanta’s best player — Joseph marks just the second Canadian-born player to sign with the Raptors.Current basketball development consultant/community ambassador Jamaal Magloire played a season with the team before retiring.Joseph was selected by the Spurs with the 29th overall pick in 2011 and has played in two NBA Finals in his four NBA seasons, including 2014 when the won the a championship.“There’s no place like home,” Joseph said. “I’m just so excited to be home, to get to play in front of my family and friends for an organization like the Toronto Raptors. It’s literally a dream come true.”Growing up in the Toronto area, the Pickering native was a Raptors fan. Ujiri has been familiar with Joseph’s game for a long time and was especially happy to bring him back to Toronto.This is a special moment, I know for Cory, but I really feel, a special moment for us as an organization, us as a city, us as a country” Ujiri said. “It’s phenomenal….It’s a joy for me. I don’t know how to even explain it.”Although the ink is now dry on the contract with his hometown team, Joseph is also unable to explain how it will feel to slip into a Raptors jersey.“To be able to sit here and talk about it, I can’t wait to put my jersey on,” he said. “I thought it over in my head, I still don’t know how I’m going to feel when I put that jersey on and I go out and play that first game for the Toronto Raptors. It’s still kind of surreal to me. I gotta let it settle in a little bit.”

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Toronto Welcomes DeMarre Carroll & Cory Joseph

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.

DeMarre Carroll

Carroll Return A Timely One

DeMarre Carroll Injury Update

SickKids Hospital Welcomes DeMarre

Toronto Welcomes DeMarre Carroll & Cory Joseph

Raptors Sign DeMarre Carroll