terrence ross

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The Toronto Raptors announced Tuesday they have acquired forward-centre Serge Ibaka (Surge ee-BAK-ah) from the Orlando Magic in exchange for forward-guard Terrence Ross and a future first-round draft pick. “Our organization is excited to add a player of this caliber to our team as we strive to reach the next level," said Raptors President Masai Ujiri. "Serge Ibaka brings valuable postseason experience and elevates our talent level in many different areas."

“We thank Terrence for his dedication and service to the Raptors organization. He is a wonderful young man who has helped our team grow the last few seasons."

Ibaka, 6-foot-10, 235 pounds, is averaging a career high-tying 15.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.6 blocks and 30.5 minutes in 56 games (all starts) this season. He is shooting .488 (343-for-703) from the field and a career-best .388 (83-for-214) from three-point range.

Ibaka owns career averages of 11.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and 29.0 minutes in 580 career games (469 starts) with Oklahoma City and Orlando. He posted career highs of 15.1 points and 8.8 rebounds in 2013-14 with the Thunder.

A native of the Republic of Congo, Ibaka has been named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team three times (2011-12, 2012-13, 2013-14) and led the League in blocks in four consecutive seasons (2010-14).

Ibaka scored a career-high 31 points November 13, 2016 at Oklahoma City. He set personal bests of 22 rebounds February 19, 2015 versus Dallas and 11 blocked shots February 19, 2012 versus Denver.

In the postseason, Ibaka is averaging 10.9 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 31.0 minutes in 89 games. He has reached the Western Conference finals four times with one NBA finals appearance in 2012. Ibaka was selected 24th overall in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Seattle Supersonics. The Magic acquired him from Oklahoma City on June 23, 2016 in exchange for Ersan Ilyasova, Victor Oladipo and the draft rights to Domantas Sabonis.

Prior to the NBA, Ibaka played professionally in Spain for three seasons (2006-09). He also captured a silver medal with Spain at the 2012 Olympics.

Ross owns career averages of 9.5 points and 2.6 rebounds in 363 games (132 starts) with Toronto. He ranks third on the Raptors’ all-time three-point field goals lists with 598. Ross was selected eighth overall by Toronto in the 2012 NBA Draft.

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Raptors Acquire Serge Ibaka From Magic

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Although the 2014-2015 season was a challenging one for Terrence Ross, you wouldn’t know it from his offseason demeanor. After undergoing surgery to remove bone spurs from his left ankle in May, Ross has spent much of his offseason rehabbing. He took a break in mid-July to join Toronto’s summer league squad in Las Vegas and get a glimpse of the two rookies the team drafted. While his appearance was limited to the bench, he was rarely still for the duration of the game. Unable to get on the court himself, he channeled his competitiveness into instructing his teammates.

“I had never even had my wisdom teeth pulled out [prior to May’s procedure],” Ross said. “This was the first time I ever had to go under the needle.”

From jumping up animatedly during timeouts while gesturing wildly to sophomore Bruno Caboclo, and explaining sets to rookies Delon Wright and Norman Powell on the bench, Ross was wholly engaged in the summer league match up.

Ross was able to see Caboclo’s progression over the course of the season during practice sessions, but getting to watch him take the court in Vegas served as a reminder of the unique advantages and potential his lengthy frame has afforded him.

“Bruno has super long arms,” Ross said. “He can make it hard for guys. He just has to know what to do. He’s quick enough, he has athleticism, he has the physical attributes. There are things he can do to make it tough on defenders. It’s cool. At first, nobody knew what he could do. Once the season started and he started working out with the coaches you got a feel for it and after that he was just trying to figure things out. Seeing all the work he put in, getting to see him play live in games, he’s improving. He’s coming along.”

Planning on training in LA with teammates and coaches before heading to Vancouver for more work with his Raptors teammates, Ross says focusing on his first step will be a priority when he gets the go-ahead and has rehab limitations lifted by the training staff.

“Rather than doing East and West, just going North and South,” Ross said. “That’s what I'm trying to work on when I get back so it helps me get by defenders so I can get to the basket.”

Part of what helped Ross stay level during a season that saw him go from starter to reserve was the birth of his son. Already extremely tight with his mother, Marcine, a former basketball player herself, becoming a parent has given Ross and his mother another thing in common. 

“She just loves being a grandmother,” Ross said. “She’s always trying to come around, try to see him whenever she can. Whenever I'm going anywhere with him, she wants to go with me. She just loves having another baby around. She’s having fun with it.”

Ross is entering his fourth season. It’s a big year for him. The Raptors could lock him up with a rookie contract extension before the deadline at the end of October or, alternatively, they could allow him to play out this season, which would send him on a path towards restricted free agency next summer. Drafted because of his jaw-dropping athleticism and potential, the 24-year-old is looking to prove he can consistently be effective on both ends of the floor.

The eighth pick in the 2012 NBA Draft declared for the NBA after his sophomore season at the University of Washington. He had the opportunity to play against Powell during Powell’s freshman season at UCLA and knew he was a skilled player. Ross, a two-time dunk contest winner, didn’t expect to see Powell’s above-the-rim game and came away from summer league impressed.

“He plays with tenacity on defence,” Ross said. “He’s talented offensively. He can do it all. I saw him in college, he was athletic and could dunk and everything, but what he’s been doing lately, it’s surprised me. He’s looking like the steal of the draft.”

With a new-look roster and offseason moves geared toward improving defensively, Ross knows what is needed — and expected — from him. Although he enjoyed getting to help his younger teammates from the bench in Vegas, he’s eager to get back to showing what he can do on the floor.

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Ross Focused And Ready For Pivotal Season

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After five years of nonstop work and dedication, DeMar DeRozan was rewarded for his efforts in the 2013-2014 season. Being named an All-Star reserve and making it to the playoffs for the first time in his career, DeRozan’s string of wins continued in the summer when he was named to Team USA and won a gold medal at the FIBA World Cup. As the good times multiplied, in true DeRozan fashion, the daily work continued. 

When DeRozan inked a four-year contract extension in 2012, many felt it made him overpaid. Today it looks like a bargain and the 25-year-old DeRozan shows no sign of slowing down. If Kyle Lowry sets the tone for the Raptors, it’s backcourt mate DeRozan who provides Lowry with the support he needs to be able to focus on pushing the team forward. 

With Lowry acknowledging that he and DeRozan understand how much the team depends on the two of them, there wasn’t time for either leader to celebrate the team’s return to the playoffs. Aware that expectations are much higher now, DeRozan is determined to take the Raptors farther.

Third-year swingman Terrence Ross was given a dose of reality about the work necessary to become an All-Star-calibre player in the NBA after spending much of his offseason training alongside DeRozan. The eighth pick in the 2012 Draft, Ross showed flashes of his potential last season, highlighted by a 51-point performance against the Los Angeles Clippers. Ross blamed himself for the final play in Toronto’s Game 7 loss, and is itching to show the improvements he has made to his game, starting with “about 15 pounds” of added muscle.

A priority for Toronto this season will be finding ways to manage the playing time of its starters. DeRozan was third in the league for total minutes played last season. The addition of Louis Williams and James Johnson will help to lighten the load. 

Williams is eager to show he’s fully recovered from an ACL tear that sidelined him for much of 2012-2013 and Toronto’s vets are happy to have the quick-scoring reserve backing them up. For a team that struggled with slowing down big and athletic wing players, the versatile, defensive-minded Johnson fills an obvious need. The pair will join Landry Fields and rookie Bruno Caboclo to bring depth on the perimeter.

“I think adding James will really be a benefit to us,” Lowry said. “Adding Lou is going to be a real big help for us. We're going to put pressure on him because we need him to score, that's what he is brought here to be. We want him to be the Lou Williams who in the fourth quarter might go off for 20. We've got guys who are ready to play. The guys are focused on getting to the next level.”

During the team’s annual media day, DeRozan revealed that he spent lots of time in Spain with Team USA teammate Kyrie Irving, discussing Irving’s crafty, creative finishes. After employing the services of a ball-handling specialist who worked with him for an hour daily after finishing the rest of his workout, DeRozan should have a tighter handle and, perhaps, some Irving-inspired finishing at the rim this season. With DeRozan’s work ethic rubbing off on Ross, it should be an entertaining season from the high-flying swingmen.

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Raptors 2014 Season Preview: Shooting Guards & Small Forwards

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Raptors Top 10: Terrence Ross

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As pre-draft workouts continue this week on the Raptors Practice Court, the game changing day for NBA hopefuls inches closer; exactly three weeks away today.  The excited anxiety has been captured at Air Canada Centre as local hopefuls strive for performance perfection and the Raptors organization preps for that slated 20th pick.

So what was Draft Day like for the current Raptors squad?

Toronto fans would remember three very well.

It was 2009 when the name DeMar DeRozan was linked with the city for the first time, being selected 9th by the team north of the border. Two years later, in 2011, as fans packed Real Sports for the Draft Party, Jonas Valanciunas showed the camera his draft pick position, 5th, and fans left with a little name pronunciation homework. And the following year, a bow-tie clad Terrence Ross shook hands with Toronto at the 8th selection. The rest of the current team fell into the following order when their names were called on that game changing day:  13th – Tyler Hansbrough, Indiana, 2009 14th – Patrick Patterson, Houston, 2010 24th – Kyle Lowry, Memphis, 2006 28th – Greivis Vasquez, Memphis, 2010 26th – John Salmons, San Antonio, 2002 32nd – Steve Novak, Houston, 2006 39th – Landry Fields, New York, 2010 53rd – Nando De Colo, San Antonio, 2009 56th – Amir Johnson, Detroit, 2005 (Last player in NBA history to be drafted out of high school)

Undrafted but signed to the NBA within the same year: Chuck Hayes, Houston, 2005 Dwight Buycks, Phoenix, 2011 Julyan Stone, Denver, 2011

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Throwback Thursday: Where Were They on Draft Day?

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Raptors To Participate In NBA Summer League 2014 In Las Vegas

A healthy lead of as much as 26 points by the Raptors had the crowd thinking that the game was in the bag. A healthy crowd helped cheer the Raptors back to victory when the lead was lost. The series sits at 3-2 for team from the north. And how about that Kyle Lowry, eh? #VictoryBaby #WeTheNorth

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#RTZ Digital Rundown: Raptors vs. Nets – Game 5

Thousands of Raptors fans will make their way tonight to Air Canada Centre to cheer on their Atlantic Division champions – from outside the arena. Through the first four games of their 2014 NBA Playoff series versus the Brooklyn Nets, Maple Leaf Square – adjacent to Air Canada Centre – has seen increasingly larger crowds gather for Raptors playoff viewing parties. Sunday saw the largest crowd yet with an estimate 4,500 fans attending the Party in the Square presented by Bell to watch Game Four on the Bremner video screen.

“The support for the Raptors this season in Toronto, and across Canada, has highlighted the fact that this is one of the most passionate markets in the NBA, and in my mind, this is just the first step in what we can accomplish,” said Tim Leiweke, President and CEO of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment. “Together with our fans and our partners, we are working to build a consistent playoff contender so that we can look forward to this electric environment each and every year.”

Coming off a record-setting 48-win regular season, the heightened appetite for Toronto Raptors during their playoff run is evident across the board – on social media, in sales, sponsorship and on television. Some of the highlights include:

The first four games of Toronto’s NBA Playoffs telecasts on TSN are averaging 640,000 Viewers 2+. The average reach of the games is at 2,859,000 and the average peak audience is 1,213,000. Game Four, with 885,000 viewers, marked the highest Toronto Raptors NBA Playoffs audience on any Specialty Network. The previous high was Game 5 vs. the Detroit Pistons in the 2002 NBA Playoffs, which also aired on TSN (612,000).

The Raptors will continue their playoff push as they host the Brooklyn Nets tonight at 7:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on TSN and TSN 1050.

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Raptors Record-Setting Season On The Court Produces Record Results Off The Court As Well

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