Columnist image

TSN Raptors Reporter

| Archive

With the Toronto Raptors celebrating their 20th anniversary season in 2014-15, Josh Lewenberg and TSN.ca take a look back at the franchise's first two decades with weekly Top Five lists, counting down the standout and signature players and moments in team history.

 

5. Keon Clark

For a host of reasons, many of them unrelated to basketball, Clark never reached his immense potential as a defender in the NBA. That said, his best years came in Toronto, where he served as a rim protector off the bench for a pair of Raptors' playoff teams. Those two teams he was a part of both rank in the franchise's top three seasons in defensive efficiency. A long and athletic shot blocker, Clark is a big reason why. The 6-foot-11 centre swatted 1.8 shots per game as a member of the Raptors - the second-highest mark in team history. He owns the franchise's best ever defensive rating.

4. Amir Johnson

Johnson has anchored the Raptors' defence for the better part of the last five years and was a catalyst in the team's drastic turnaround on that end after Dwane Casey took over in 2011. Often unheralded for his work, the 6-foot-9 forward has a way of changing games in subtle ways, most of them on the defensive end, where his versatility sets him apart. In addition to protecting the rim, Johnson can step out and guard stretch bigs. He may be the franchise's best ever help defender, making up for the mistakes of his teammates - including young centre Jonas Valanciunas, who the Raptors envision being on this list one day. After years of wear and tear - as a result of playing through a myriad of injuries - Johnson has lost a lot of his speed and athleticism, but remains a plus defender thanks to his instincts. He's almost always where he needs to be.

3. Marcus Camby

Camby will go down as one of the NBA's all-time greatest shot blockers. The caveat for the purposes of this list, however, is he spent only two of his 17 seasons with the Raptors. Selected with the second overall pick in one of the best drafts ever, the Raptors were impatient with the lanky centre, exchanging him for veteran help in Charles Oakley -- a great defender in his own right. But even as a young player who was injury prone and erratic offensively, Camby made an immediate impact as a rim protector for a couple of losing Raptors' clubs. Camby blocked a ridiculous 2.9 shots per game as a Raptor - by far the highest mark in franchise history - including an NBA-best 3.7 in his second and final year with the team. He would go on to win the 2006-07 Defensive Player of the Year award with Denver and made four NBA All-Defensive teams (two first, two second).

2. Antonio Davis

Davis spent the bulk of his six seasons as a Raptor playing undersized at the centre position, but thanks to his toughness, positioning and defensive knowhow he was rarely taken advantage of. Although he earned All-Star recognition in 2001, most of what made him effective, especially on defence, went under the radar. Davis was a true workhorse and an excellent individual and help defender in the low post, anchoring some, if not the most efficient defensive teams in the franchise's history. He ranks fourth on the Raptors' all-time block list (405) and fifth in blocks per game (1.3).

1. Doug Christie

Christie is not only the franchise's best ever perimeter defender, he was among the league's elite stoppers at a time in which his position was loaded with talented scorers to go up against almost every night. At 6-foot-6, he had the size to guard three positions on the floor. Although he wasn't especially fast or athletic, he made up for it with his defensive instincts. Impressively, Christie is the Raptors' all-time steals leader (664), totaling 112 more than second-place Morris Peterson, despite appearing in 228 fewer games with the team. Christie is the only player in club history to average over two steals per game (2.1) during his tenure and ranked top five in the league in that category in three of his four full seasons with Toronto. He didn't get recognized for his work on D until moving on to Sacramento, where he was named to three NBA All-Defensive second teams and one first team.

Honourable mention: Tracy McGrady, Donyell Marshall, Charles Oakley, Jerome Williams, Anthony Parker, Kyle Lowry, Morris Peterson, Alvin Williams, Kevin Willis, James Johnson, Alvin Robertson, Michael Stewart

Expert picks:

Ryan Wolstat, Toronto Sun

1. Amir Johnson - The stat's don't lie, covers for everyone's mistakes

2. Doug Christie - All-NBA caliber perimeter defender

3. Antonio Davis - Undersized but extremely effective

4. Keon Clark - Ridiculous shot blocker, was a great rim protector

5. Charles Oakley - Tough, smart, always in the right place