Raptors Coach Shares Initial Impressions of DJ Carton

The Toronto Raptors view DJ Carton as a gritty guard and someone they'd like to take a closer look at over the next 10 days before his contract expires

DJ Carton is on the board.

The newest member of the Toronto Raptors scored his first career NBA points Thursday night, beating Brooklyn Nets forward Jalen Wilson off the bounce before nailing a left-handed floater through contact for the and-1 finish late in the fourth quarter.

Carter was in for garbage time duties, playing just four minutes during his first NBA playing time since signing a 10-day contract with Toronto earlier this week.

“I like the grit that he brings with him,” Raptors coach Darko Rajaković said post-game. “I know that our scouts and our front office, they've been following him for quite some time, and they have a high opinion of him and we're going to continue evaluating working with him, putting him in play groups, and I was happy that he actually got a chance to step on the floor tonight and play.”

The 6-foot-3 Carton went undrafted in 2021 out of Marquette and has spent the past three seasons in the G League with the Greensboro Swarm and Iowa Wolves. He was averaging 18.6 points, 5.7 assists, and 1.6 steals per game while shooting 39.5% from three-point range in 29 G League games this year.

Toronto signed the 23-year-old following the expiration of 10-day contracts for Justise Winslow and Mouhamadou Gueye. The organization still has one roster spot that can be filled, though there’s no rush to do so.

When Carton’s contract does expire, Toronto can either re-sign him to a second 10-day deal, can ink him to a standard contract, or will have two weeks to fill the spot with someone new.