Raptors Reach for Collin Murray-Boyles
Defense wins Championships...eventually!
While the NBA World all reached for flashy Guards, the Raptors stayed true to their identity and went Defensive. Collin Murray-Boyles is fairly considered the best defensive player available in this 2026 Draft…and that includes Cooper Flagg! That’s a really strong endorsement. His shooting…well…there’s always things to work on!
The Raptors War Room likely were surprised when their pick came around and BOTH Maluach and Murray-Boyles were available. The Brooklyn Nets had reached for Egor Demin right before the Raptors and the offensive mindset of the entire NBA had struck yet again. Masai’s deep connections to Africa and Maluach’s rise as one of the best prospects in some time out of Africa seemed ready for a marriage made in heaven. But when Adam Silver, the preacher in this story, asked if there was anyone in the room to deny this marriage, VP of Player Development and Draft specialist Dan Tolzman, shouted out ‘I do!’
Enter Collin Murray-Boyles, 6’7” down low Bull from South Carolina. While the world was trapped inside at home during the Covid scare, Collin’s dad built a gym so he could continue training. And if that doesn’t tell you enough about the Collins family DNA, his older brother James never made it to the NBA but grinded out years of professional basketball in Europe and Kazakhstan for 6 different teams. Many say defense is 90% effort. Collin’s level of effort is simply off the charts, best in the 2025 NBA Draft.
NBA Comp?
Raptor fans know Dan Tolzman rarely misses, so when he stepped up to deny Masai’s planned Maluch marriage not many people in Toronto be doubting the decision. They might not understand the decision, but they aren’t doubting it. What’s the Collin comp to a recent NBA player to help fans understand his game? I’d say a modern Draymond Green. That guy GSW will simply never consider trading. The Heart and Soul of their team. The last man defending on plays, the first man to pass the ball and set up a teammate. The unsung hero who just never says Die, never gives up, doesn’t give anyone an inch for free.
I said ‘modern’ Draymond because Collin’s foot speed is much faster, capable of lining up against some of the fastest guards and stopping their drives by physically beating them to the lane. How he does that clocking in at just under 240 lbs I have no clue, but he does and it’s a defensive problem. That much ‘man’ always staying in front of you just ruins your day. But that’s not enough to get you drafted in the lottery in the NBA. Collin’s feel for the game, his IQ, is off the charts. Fortunately his passing skills are amazing and he takes advantage of that Vision. As a down low ‘Hub’ to pass out of Collin has a lot of potential. While Poeltl uses his height advantage to pass out of the post or elbow Collin is more creative with his delivery.
Why the Slip?
So why did Collin Murray-Boyles slip a little in the draft? Well it’s that growing in importance 3 pt shooting. He hasn’t shown much ability, to the point where it looks like he actively avoids shooting the deep ball. While that might be his natural ‘Big Man’ mentality to get down low, in the NBA when you’re 6’7” you are going to find moving around the painted area a LOT more difficult. Zion seems to power his way around the paint nicely and while Collin has some of that fast feet skill, he’s going to have to work on his long ball. It’s going to be a multi-year project.
Collin is also what they call a ‘tweener’ in the NBA. He’s a Big Man style player in a smaller package. While these guys can dominate at college level they typically struggle in the NBA with their strength advantage suddenly a weakness against fully grown men. There’s going to be a lot of work required to adjust his game to the demands and play style of the NBA. The good thing is CMB is a hard work specialist. The last thing you need to worry about is him putting in the work.
Sleeper pick?
Collin’s team went 2-16 in the SEC last year. He was literally the only good thing going on many nights. That level of weakness around a playmaker like CMB really doesn’t help showcase his skills. A lot of sleeper picks tend to appear out of poor college programs. While it’s hard to call a #9 overall pick a ‘sleeper pick’, there certainly should be a lot of offensive upside that simply wasn’t shown last year on such a weak team. If Collin shows more offensive skills he will very quickly get a lot of attention in the NBA. Zion being the gold standard for flash and attention for Bigs that aren’t that tall.
Hidden Story
Fans are likely going to be surprised…along with a bunch of NBA players…when CMB jumps up for a block. The man has verticality!!! Combined with that defensive instinct he just knows when to go up high and get a piece of it. Of course being the best defensive player in the entire draft his cookie stealing skills are top-notch. Apparently Carolina police considered his Swipe a deadly weapon. While most draft picks get abused early in the NBA that won’t be happening to Collin. He’ll be lining up against top level NBA talent most nights right from day 1. When Scottie Barnes sits down for a rest and the opponent thinks they are going to get their All Star player some run away from him, Collin is going to quickly become that guy the NBA suddenly wakes up about. Players know who is going to defend them pre-game as they mentally get ready…and CMB gonna be a name many won’t talk about pre-game, first cause they don’t know him but soon they’ll be hoping they didn’t draw his number.
Summary
For Masai to NOT pick Maluch at #9 there had to be a Monster talent that the team simply didn’t expect to be available. Collin Murray-Boyles is that Monster! While you’re sleeping in the morning, he’s working out. While you're chatting with friends after work, he’s running. When you go home tired after work his second work out just started. If it was easy everyone would do it. It’s not. It’s a talent to work that hard.
Raptor Fans are in for a real treat next year! Collin is a Bull Dog! He’ll get rotation minutes Day 1. No doubt. By the end of the year he’ll be a first off the bench guy, likely with some NBA game starts already to his name due to others being injured. There will be less than 10 rookies with as much NBA minutes as CMB gets next year, likely less than 3. He’ll earn every minute he gets too.