Raptors’ Collin Murray-Boyles nearing return from injury

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There was a welcome sight when media was let in Tuesday morning at the end of Toronto Raptors practice.

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Standout rookie Collin Murray-Boyles was on the court while being closely watched by team staffers and did some activities, concluding with free throws.

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Murray-Boyles has not played since Feb. 25, missing eight games due to a painful thumb injury that was re-aggravated in a loss to the San Antonio Spurs. The former South Carolina star had been playing through discomfort due to the ailing thumb for a while, particularly when it was hit on Jan. 18 by Luka Doncic in a game at Los Angeles.

But the thumb is feeling a lot better and Murray-Boyles said Tuesday he’s hopeful a return is close at hand. “That’s what we’ve been striving for. Obviously, I want to get back with the guys,” he said. “It hurts to sit on the bench and watch, (knowing) that I can make an impact, but we’ll see. We’re striving for it. But no promises.”

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Murray-Boyles said the injury is just a part of the game. He knows battling with big men will lead to some bumps and bruises. “That’s basketball; you get bumped, get nicked up all the time. Especially (since) I’m a physical player, so it’s bound to happen,” Murray-Boyles said.

Raptors have missed his defensive acumen

The Raptors play Chicago on Wednesday, Denver on Friday, Phoenix on Sunday and then finish the trip at Utah on Monday and at the Los Angeles Clippers on March 25.

Head coach Darko Rajakovic said Murray-Boyles is considered day to day, depending on his pain tolerance, and said the team has missed one of its top defenders. “That play that Luka Doncic made, you know, really, really put us in a tough spot there,” Rajakovic said.

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But now the team is finally close to full health. Murray-Boyles and Toronto’s other top big man, Jakob Poeltl, have only both been in the lineup 19 times all year. It will be interesting to see how the rotation works once Murray-Boyles returns since Scottie Barnes has also thrived as a big man and Sandro Mamukelashvili has had a strong season, too, offering something different than the others because he is a good three-point shooter.

Rajakovic didn’t want to get into solving his big-man puzzle on Tuesday.

“You are looking much more to the future than me,” he said. “I did not get that far along. I’m looking forward to dealing with those kind of problems. So I want to wish that all of our roster is healthy, so I can have those headaches.”

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WHAT MURRAY-BOYLES WORKED ON

Murray-Boyles used the time off to work on playing basketball with his right hand (he is left-handed) to add some versatility to his finishing and passing. He also closely watched his teammates play, which he thinks could help him upon his return.

One of the team’s strongest players also spent plenty of time in the weight room.

Murray-Boyles is adapting to a completely new role this season after doing everything for the Gamecocks in the NCAA. “Obviously, I had a way bigger role last year,” he said, but added any role in the NBA is challenging, “but I feel like I’m a pretty smart player. I can adjust and adapt pretty easily.”

Point guard Immanuel Quickley can’t wait to have Murray-Boyles back on the court. “He adds a lot to our team: Toughness, energy, rebounding and scoring, pretty much everything, defensive versatility,” Quickley said. “So it would be great to have him back, for sure.”

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Quickley, who is in his sixth season, has liked what he’s seen from the rookie.

“I think that his basketball IQ is really high, like, really elite. I tell people all the time … he’s very mature in the fact that he knows where to be on the floor. He’s always, like, two steps ahead offensively and defensively and then obviously his athleticism takes over,” Quickley said.

He’s also a bit of a basketball savant. “He grabs a lot of ideas, different tactics. He grabs it really quickly.”

BULLS TO THE BOTTOM

Toronto will start the trip in Chicago. A majority of Bulls fans has implored the franchise for years to try to bottom out instead of sticking in the mushy middle of the NBA. They never got their wish until now. A 4-18 run has dropped Chicago to ninth-last in the standings. Still not ideal, but closer to having some of the best lottery odds this summer in what’s regarded as one of the strongest drafts in decades.

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Chicago actually started the season 6-1 and they were 23-22 on Jan. 24, which is why even this swoon hasn’t taken them right down to the basement.

The building blocks are Matas Buzelis, an extremely promising 21-year-old who happens to be a Chicago native, and big point guard Josh Giddey, who is signed through 2028-29. The payroll drops nearly in half this off-season as expiring contracts come off the books.

Scarborough native Leonard Miller, who rarely played for the contending Minnesota Timberwolves over 2 1/2 seasons, is getting a look down the stretch in Chicago and has delivered 8.3 points, 4.6 rebounds and shot 56% from the field in 13 games, five of them starts. Miller is still only 22 and could potentially play for Team Canada at some point, having previously attended senior team camps.

X: @WolstatSun

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