Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic on Gradey Dick, Markquis Nowell

Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic discusses how Summer League has gone so far and the play of Gradey Dick and Markquis Nowell in practice.

Video Transcript

- Well, how does it feel to be in Vegas? How are they taking it all in right now?

DARKO RAJAKOVIC: It's great. We have an amazing group of guys that are here, putting a lot of work. Actually, our coaching staff came a little bit earlier over here so we can start meet and prepare. We used that time very efficiently. So everything is running pretty smooth.

- OK, Is there anything that you're looking forward to seeing from your guys in the game action as you guys start tomorrow?

DARKO RAJAKOVIC: Absolutely. We're looking for to togetherness, for guys playing the right way, being installed a lot of new things, offensively, defensively, new terminology for the guys. So it's going to be a lot of new catching up for them. But today, practice actually was a really, really good one. We were able to clean up all the stuff and make improvements.

- What do you most want to see from Gradey with these games? Gradey?

DARKO RAJAKOVIC: Yes, Gradey, actually, he's doing a great job in all of those practices we have so far. I want to learn more about him. I want to see him be out there, playing free, trying to learn our system, and just have fun.

- [INAUDIBLE]

--very, very special player, a unique player. Have you sen much in his two days of working here that kind of makes you go, this guy might have a chance?

DARKO RAJAKOVIC: No, for sure. He's doing a great job. He has a very high level of maturity. The way he's communicating with the inmates and leading, he's setting a great example for everybody else. He's embracing our culture. And he's doing great job.

- I'm sorry.

- No, you go.

- And I mean, have you seen some of the creativity that kind of made him more effective when he was in college?

DARKO RAJAKOVIC: For sure. He's been a great job in pick-and-rolls, finding the open man, running the team, getting guys organized, getting in their spots. He's been doing a good job. And also defensively, he's been picking up full court, being really aggressive. And that's an area that I challenged him to get better at.

- With a lot of point guards, teammates are naturally drawn to that. Does he have that sort of leadership quality to him, or is that too early to say that?

DARKO RAJAKOVIC: He definitely has leadership qualities. I mean, he's a young man. I don't know if you can expect from 22 or 23-year-old men to be the leaders of our nation. But definitely, he's doing a great job of learning the system, communicating, setting up the tone for everybody. He's doing great, great job.

- It's obviously a very intense experience, coaching Summer League over a short period of time. So you can't really implement everything you want. What's the one thing you want your young players to walk away from this experience with, understanding about your expectations-- [INAUDIBLE]?

DARKO RAJAKOVIC: Togetherness on both ends of the floor, defensively, covering for each other, defensively, being really engaged, knowing what they're doing, kind of learning our schemes. And offensively, togetherness well, playing the right way, moving the ball, playing off of each other, I think those are the main things for me.

- Obviously with the way that the offseason works, some things are official, some things are not. What we can say is Jakob is back, and Jalen is a new Raptor. So what-- in your mind, what could they bring to the team that you're looking for?

DARKO RAJAKOVIC: Both of those, great human beings. I talked to Jakob the other day. He's excited to be back. He's looking forward to building something special in Toronto. He's a player that does a really good job of protecting the rim. He's doing a great job on the defensive end.

But also, I want to really use him in kind of more different ways, putting him-- putting the ball in his hands more as a decision maker. And he's really good passer there.

And Jalen is also a very intriguing player and still a young player. He showed signs of improvement this last year. We have a lot of expectations from him. He's great playing with the ball and really versatile defensively. So I think he's going to bring a lot to our team as well.

- You spoke about Jakob having the ball in his hands. Based on some things that we think might happen in the near future, it seems like Scottie's going to take a bigger-- have the ball in his hands a bit more for your team too. How much of a burden do you think he's ready for in carrying that playmaking ball handler role?

DARKO RAJAKOVIC: I mean, when you watch Scottie play, nothing looks like a burden to him. He loves the ball in his hands. He loves the decision making. He was here with us in the morning, going through some drills with our events in town.

He just enjoys playing the right way. He's the guy that's always trying to find his teammates. And he's very, very unselfish. So I think the more you give him the ball, the more you're going to get for everyone on the team.

- And Jakob was really effective in the pick-and-roll, as a finisher. Do you see that as, essentially, something you can use in your preparation?

DARKO RAJAKOVIC: No, for sure. He's a great pick-and-roll player. Obviously, he will have to figured out playing with different personnel on a team, when to set screens, when to roll, how to play. But he's really good at playing in the pocket pass, really good roller, really good connector with his teammates. And that's going to be one of the ways we're going to use him.

- I know that there's been a lot of focus on attention on Gradey, as deserved. But what stands out to you so far about Marquese?

DARKO RAJAKOVIC: What we talked about Marquese is that, first of all, that he is very smart, mature player, really good in pick-and-rolls, a player that can connect with the teammates. And I think he's just going to continue to grow in those roles.