NBA draft 2025 live blog: Raptors worked out Noa Essengue; what time will Toronto pick?; VanVleet re-signs with Rockets
Raptors GM Bobby Webster and his team have the No. 9 pick heading into the 2025 NBA Draft on Wednesday. Jeff Haynes NBAE via Getty Image Updated 1 hr ago Updated 1 hr ago Updated 2 hrs ago Updated 3 hrs ago Updated 3 hrs ago
Noa Essengue from Ratiopharm Ulm passes the ball past Louis Olinde of ALBA Berlin at Uber Arena in Berlin last November. City-Press via Getty Images Updated 5 hrs ago Updated 5 hrs ago
New York Knicks' Miles McBride, left, and Jalen Brunson, right, defend Boston Celtics' Kristaps Porzingis during the first half of Game 4 in the Eastern Conference semifinals of the NBA basketball playoffs Monday, May 12, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II) FF 10 hrs ago
Canadian NBA draft prospect Will Riley, pictured on the left attending a Raptors game during the 2018-19 season and at the NBA combine in Chicago earlier this month. Handout/Getty Images 10 hrs ago Updated 2 hrs ago
NBA draft prospect Noa Essengue, who played for Ratiopharm Ulm in Germany last season, could be a target for the Raptors at No. 9. DeFodi Images Getty Images 10 hrs ago
Khaman Maluach of the Duke Blue Devils is a potential target for the Raptors with the No. 9 pick in the NBA draft on Wednesday night, if they keep it.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
While a date with top-ranked U.S. looms, Canada not looking past No. 43 Costa Rica
TORONTO – With a date with the top-ranked United States looming Wednesday in Washington, D.C., the Canadian women take to the field Friday in Toronto against Costa Rica. At No. 43, the Central Americans are ranked 35 places below Canada. But Canada coach Casey Stoney is wary of what awaits at BMO Field. 'I think it's an opponent we can't take for granted,' the former England captain said after training Thursday. 'They got a nil-nil draw against the U.S. last summer.' 'There will be absolutely no complacency,' she added with emphasis. 'We don't allow for that. We go into every game to try to compete to win. And that will be the same Friday and that will be the same next week.' Stoney expects to face a heavy Costa Rican defensive presence that will be hard to break down. 'We should expect to dominate the ball, but with the ball, we have to make sure we're very good on transition,' she said. 'I think it's an improvement we need to do from the last camp. I thought we got caught out a few times there. 'It's about how we can look at relationships on the pitch, how we can create overloads in certain areas and try and break them down. And then it's about a bit of creativity and individual brilliance, when you're trying to beat a (defensive) block as well. There's been some really positive stuff this week in training and I'm really looking forward to seeing how that plays out (Friday).' Canada has won all 17 previous meetings with Costa Rica, outscoring the Central Americans 53-6. But they needed a 104th-minute goal to win 1-0 the last time they met, in March 2024 in the quarterfinals of the CONCACAF W Gold Cup in Los Angeles. Canada had blanked Costa Rica 3-0 in the group stage at the tournament. Canada has called in Canadian under-20 goalkeeper Noelle Henning to replace Lysianne Proulx, who has had to withdraw due to a shoulder injury. Proulx has returned to Italy's Juventus to continue rehabilitation. Friday's game is a special 'Pride Celebration' match, the third in as many years for the Canadian women who will wear a special kit featuring Pride-themed numbers. For veteran defender Vanessa Gilles, it's just the right thing to do. 'It's something that just feels right for us,' said Gilles, now with Bayern Munich. 'Whenever we can, as players and as a team, we try to make people feel comfortable and accepted as they can (be) — and as loved as they can (be) — no matter race, colour, whatever it may be. 'We're very welcoming. As a country, those are the values we try to exude. And as a team we try to live by that. So to be able to be at home for Pride Night as well is huge. I hope a lot of people come and feel the love as well.' Canada Soccer reported Thursday that tickets sales were approaching 10,000 with a bump in sales expected in the final 24 hours. Coming off a pair of wins over No. 50 Haiti, the Canadian women are 5-1-1 under Stoney, whose first games in charge were at the Pinatar Cup in Spain in February. The lone loss was a 1-0 setback at the hands of No. 32 Argentina in April in Langford, B.C. The Canadians had defeated the South Americans 3-0 four days earlier in Vancouver. Costa Rica failed to advance out of the group stage at the 2023 World Cup, losing to No. 2 Spain (3-0), No. 7 Japan (2-0) and No. 65 Zambia (3-1). Canada, under then-coach Bev Priestman, also failed to reach the knockout round after drawing No. 36 Nigeria 0-0, beating No. 25 Ireland 2-1 and losing 4-0 to No 15 Australia, the tournament co-host. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. Costa Rica went 0-2-1 in its only other trip to the World Cup, in 2015 in Canada. The current Canadian roster features two Northern Super League players in Emma Regan (AFC Toronto) and Holly Ward (Vancouver Rise FC). Eight other NSL players are also on international duty during the FIFA window, with Jamaica, Nigeria, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, South Korea and Ukraine. Unavailable for Canada due to injury are defenders Kadeisha Buchanan, Sydney Collins and Jayde Riviere, and forwards Olivia Smith and Cloé Lacasse. Buchanan is in town, however, and was working out with a trainer during the Canada practice Thursday. — This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 26, 2025.
CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
Mavs make Duke star Cooper Flagg the No. 1 pick of 2025 NBA draft; Raptors take Murray-Boyles
Toronto takes sophomore South Carolina forward at No. 9 overall Image | 2222171486 Caption: Duke forward Cooper Flagg, right, shakes hands with NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected first overall in the 2025 NBA draft by the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday in Brooklyn. () Cooper Flagg is the new Maine man in Dallas. The Mavericks took the Duke forward with the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft on Wednesday night, hoping they have found their next franchise superstar less than five months after trading one away. Mavericks fans were furious when Dallas traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 1, some immediately threatening to end their support of the team. But the ones who stuck around may quickly love Flagg, the college player of the year who averaged 19.2 points and 7.5 rebounds while leading Duke to the Final Four. The Mavericks quickly announced that Flagg would wear No. 32 in Dallas, where fellow Duke products Kyrie Irving and Dereck Lively II are on the roster. "I'm really excited. I think I keep saying I'm excited to be a sponge, to get down there and just learn, be surrounded by Hall of Fame-caliber guys and just to be able to learn from them," Flagg said. "It's going to be an incredible experience." His selection — considered likely ever since Flagg showed off his considerable game last summer after being invited to the U.S. Olympic team's training camp — was a daylong celebration in his home state for the 18-year-old forward from Newport, Maine. "It means a lot to me to have the support of the whole state. I know how many people showed up today and supported me at some of the draft parties back home," Flagg said. "It feels amazing knowing I can inspire younger kids. I was in their shoes really not that long ago, so just to know I can give those kids those feelings and have the whole state behind me, it means a lot." He joined Elton Brand, Irving, Zion Williamson and Paolo Banchero as Duke players drafted No. 1 since 1999, and he returned the draft to its longtime start with a one-and-done college player. That's the way the draft began every year from 2010 until Banchero's selection in 2022, but the last two No. 1 picks, Victor Wembanyama and Zaccherie Risacher, are both from France. Raptors slip to 9th in NBA draft lottery; Mavericks win top pick with 1.8 per cent odds Rutgers freshman Dylan Harper was taken by the Spurs with the No. 2 pick and will try to follow Wembanyama and Stephon Castle and give San Antonio a third straight NBA Rookie of the Year. "It's definitely a goal of mine to make it three in a row," Harper said. "I think the coaching staff and the players are going to make it easy for me to go out there and showcase my talent, so definitely." The 76ers then took Baylor's VJ Edgecombe, getting the first sustained burst of loud cheers of the draft from what seemed to be a number of Philadelphia fans who made the trip to Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The first two picks had long been expected, but the No. 3 spot was the first one where there was intrigue. Kon Knueppel made it two Duke players in the first four picks when the Charlotte Hornets took him at No. 4. Ace Bailey, who could have been in the mix to go third but declined to work out for the 76ers, ended up going at No. 5 to Utah. Then it was Tre Johnson of Texas to the Washington Wizards at No. 6 and Oklahoma's Jeremiah Fears to New Orleans at No. 7, before the host Nets took BYU's Egor Demin at No. 8, Brooklyn's first of potentially five selections in the first round. Raptors choose Murray-Boyles at No. 9 The Toronto Raptors selected Collin Murray-Boyles ninth overall. Murray-Boyles averaged 16.8 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists over 32 games as a sophomore forward for the South Carolina Gamecocks last season. He averaged 10.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.8 assists as a freshman, starting in 19 games and playing in nine others. Murray-Boyles averaged a steal and a block per game in his first year of U.S. collegiate basketball, then averaged 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocks per game this past season. He was named to the Southeastern Conference's All-Freshman Team in 2024 and was on the second-team All-SEC team this year. The Raptors finished the season with a 30-52 record, seventh worst in the league. Toronto dropped down to the ninth overall pick in the draft lottery, however. The Raptors also have the 39th overall pick, which will be selected on Thursday in the second round of the NBA Draft. Duke big man Khaman Maluach finished up the top 10, a pick made by the Houston Rockets but headed to Phoenix as part of the trade for Kevin Durant that can't become official until next month. Will Riley was the first Canadian selected in the draft. The six-foot-eight forward from Kitchener, Ont., was taken 21st overall by the Utah Jazz. He was then traded to the Washington Wizards. The 19-year-old Riley averaged 12.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game as a freshman for the Illinois Fighting Illini.
Global News
2 hours ago
- Global News
Vancouver Canuck Evander Kane says he is ‘humbled' and ready to be a leader
Wearing a suit of Vancouver Canucks colours, new player Evander Kane held his first press conference on Thursday. Kane, 33, was traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday and he said he is excited to be home. 'I actually had this in my closet,' Kane said of his blue and green patterned suit. 'And when I was planning on coming here, I wasn't planning on packing it. But, you know, I said I got to wear this for the interview, so it worked out well.' Kane said he is excited to bring his unique style of playing to the Vancouver Canucks, which he said is a hard-working team. 'Looking forward to getting to know everybody and getting integrated with the group,' he said. Story continues below advertisement And the B.C. native acknowledged it is going to be easier having his family around to help out with his four kids. 'They're really excited to get to spend some more time with grandma and grandpa,' he said. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'I know it was fortunate that we were in Edmonton so we weren't too far away so they were able to see them more often than they would have been if we were playing elsewhere, but to be able to come back home and have some family and friends around with having four kids definitely makes it a little easier on myself, so that'll be fun for them.' The Edmonton Oilers said they traded Kane to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for Vancouver's fourth round selection in the 2025 NHL Draft (117th overall). Kane said his time with the Oilers was great. 'Edmonton brought me into their organization… embraced me and the city kind of fell in love with me and I kind of fell in love with the city and we had a lot of on-ice success as well,' he said. 'So it was a great experience, and I'm hoping that can continue here in Vancouver, coming back home.' Kane admitted there have been some difficult times in his career but those experiences have humbled him and he has emerged on the other side 'better off and better for it.' Story continues below advertisement 1:42 Evander Kane's rehab from injury going better than expected Kane said that as he enters his 17th year playing hockey, he's looking forward to being someone who younger players can look up to. 'When you go through different things on and off the ice, you can lend those lessons to some of the younger guys and some other guys that are maybe struggling with things,' he said. 'Just being mentally tough, especially in a Canadian market, can be important and it can be difficult when you're not used to it. So I think leadership is something that I've always tried to do and lead by example, especially on the ice. And I think that's gonna be important moving forward as well.' — with files from Karen Bartko
