Raptors Coach Gets Early Award Buzz Before Training Camp

Head coach Darko Rajakovic has not run a single practice for the new season yet, and the Toronto Raptors bench boss is already getting Coach of the Year buzz.

On the latest episode of The Zach Lowe Show, Lowe and Howard Beck made their award picks, and Rajakovic showed up at the top of both lists.

Beck named Rajakovic as his pick for Coach of the Year, and Lowe then said Rajakovic was his top pick as well.

Lowe also raised the biggest problem with that case, and it has to do with the new star in town.

"If the Raptors exceed expectations, how much of the credit is given to Kawhi Leonard?" Lowe asked, according to Raptors Republic.

It is a fair question.

Forward Kawhi Leonard came to Toronto in the trade with the Los Angeles Clippers that became official on Sept. 14, and he then signed a two-year extension that could be worth up to $115 million.

He averaged 27.9 points in 65 games last season, so voters could easily give him the credit if the Raptors take a big step.

The best argument for Rajakovic is how much his teams have grown.

Toronto went 25-57 in his first season, 30-52 in his second and 46-36 last season, which was his first winning record as a head coach.

The Raptors also made the playoffs and pushed Cleveland to seven games in the first round before losing the series.

Forward Scottie Barnes grew into a top-20 player on ESPN's new NBA Rank while playing for Rajakovic, and the team won more games every single year, which is hard to wave away.

Now the front office has raised the bar, and general manager Bobby Webster has already laid out what he expects from this group in 2027.

The trouble is that expectations are already high.

Coach of the Year usually goes to a coach whose team blows past what people expected, so Rajakovic will likely need a lot more than 47 wins to win it.

Rajakovic also has more talent now than he has ever had.

Leonard has talked about why he wanted to come back to Toronto, and Webster has made sure Leonard knows what the team expects from him.

Pairing him with Barnes gives Rajakovic two stars to build around and a lot of ways to set his lineups.

Media day is Monday, and training camp opens Tuesday in Quebec City.

The Raptors open the regular season at home against the Chicago Bulls on Oct. 21.

The award talk is nice, but Rajakovic's job this season is to turn a playoff team into a real threat in the East.

If he can do that with a roster that has changed this much, he will deserve a big share of the credit no matter how much Leonard helps, and the voters may not be able to ignore him.