After a 114-102 defeat in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, the Toronto Raptors have officially been eliminated from the NBA playoffs. Not many expected them to give the Cleveland Cavaliers a run for their money in the first round, but pushing the series to seven games while missing two key starters was an extremely impressive and promising showing for what the future holds. 

In the franchise’s first playoff series in four years, every player in the rotation had something to prove, given that the Raptors may have had the least experienced roster in the playoffs. Some players showed they were capable of rising to the occasion, while others didn’t set themselves up for a very smooth offseason. Here are the grades for the first-round series for each bench player in the playoff rotation, with each player’s expectations in mind. 

Battle is a player who may be difficult to assess at times because of his limited play time, but he was given significant spurts in a few of the games this series. While he may not be one of the strengths of the Raptors’ relentless defense, he provided important bench shooting, going 7-for-11 from the three-point line in six appearances. At times, he wasn’t given the opportunities to shoot and became a negative asset for the Raptors due to the Cavaliers including him in as many actions as possible on defense. His overall box plus/minus was -1 for the series, and that’s with a +20 in Game 3 when he shot 100% from the field and 4-for-4 from three. 

For a guy who spent most of the season in the G-League, Lawson wasn’t expected to play much in his first taste of the NBA Playoffs. The injury to Brandon Ingram allowed him to get impactful minutes in the final two games of the series, and he did not disappoint. He earned a spot on the All-G-League Second-Team due to his dynamic ability to score for the Raptors 905, but it was his defense that really stood out for the senior team. 

Tasked with guarding superstars James Harden and Donovan Mitchell from time to time, Lawson proved that he was not afraid of the moment, even with his lack of scoring. In this series, Lawson proved that he deserves a chance with the Raptors next season, and if he can find a way to score similarly to the way he did in the G-League, he will be able to have a very successful career in the NBA. 

There was plenty of good in this series for the second-year guard, but it seemed to be overshadowed by his shooting woes. Shead didn’t have a good year from the field (37/32/78 shooting splits), and without his heroic Game 1 where he shot 5-for-6 from three, he shot just 25% from three in the other six games. 

On the bright side, Shead was consistently good in the same areas in the playoffs as he was in the regular season. He contributed 35 total assists with a 2.5:1 assist/turnover ratio, and played aggressive defense that led to 10 steals, mostly on the two Cavaliers’ superstars. If he can improve drastically as a shooter, he can consider himself a key piece to this Raptors team, but until then, he may not be able to obtain a starting spot next season. 

After having a career year in the regular season, Mamukelashvili was disappointing in his first playoff series. His minutes were important off the bench, especially with how poorly Jakob Poeltl played, but the Georgian forward did not deliver. While he did play fewer minutes per game on average than in the regular season, he averaged just five points per game on 40/29/43 shooting splits.

He is not known to have stellar defense, but he really wasn’t providing anything that Jakob Poeltl was lacking on both ends of the floor. As a free agent, the Raptors surely would like to have him back, but he did not earn himself more money from his first taste of the playoffs. 

As a rookie lottery pick, the expectations were debatable for Murray-Boyles going into the season. His diverse defense was put on notice since training camp, but his lack of offensive production limited his playing time severely. Once he established aggression in attacking the basket, he became exponentially more advantageous to have on the floor, and that was no different in the playoffs. 

His boost of energy on defense next to Scottie Barnes proved to be a significant barrier for the Cavaliers. Adding in his ability to serve as the roller in pick-and-roll actions, along with making cuts to the basket off the ball, he quickly became one of the most important players for his team in the playoffs. There is no doubt that if he can develop a shot in at least the midrange, he will be an essential piece to the Raptors' core moving forward.

The bench was a point of focus for the Raptors all season because of their consistent lack of production on the offensive end. Outside of Murray-Boyles, those struggles remained for a majority of the series and will be something general manager Bobby Webster will need to address going into next season.