Holly MacKenzie - Raptors.com
When the Toronto Raptors selected Jonas Valanciunas fifth overall in the 2011 draft, the Barclays Center crowd watched highlights of the 19-year-old teenager flash across the screen with a slightly muted response. While he was highly touted among those in NBA circles, Raptors fans watching via television back in Toronto needed more time to get familiar with their rookie. Three seasons later, that draft night apprehension has evaporated. The Lithuanian with a penchant for ice fishing during Canadian winters and the fanbase that has learned to embrace its northern identity have become an ideal match. With one year remaining on his rookie contract and the summer winding down, Valanciunas had one thing on his mind. “I just wanted to sign with the Raptors,” Valanciunas said. “That’s all.” In an offseason of change, Toronto knew it wanted to make Valanciunas a constant. Orchestrating one move after the other to address last season’s weaknesses and upgrade the team defensively, the team decided not to wait until October’s extension deadline and inked the 23-year-old to a four-year deal. Getting the extension completed now ensures the team — and Valanciunas — can go into the season without it being a lingering distraction. “I feel good about next season,” Valanciunas said. “A contract is just a contract. Now we have to do a job.” A lot has happened since Valanciunas came to the Raptors in 2012. Gone is the young 19-year-old who spent his first training camp nursing a calf injury, wisely using his time to work on English and basketball terminology instead. Since arriving in Toronto, Valanciunas has gotten married and become a father, welcoming a son this past March. On the floor he’s a much more mature player than the one trying to learn the NBA game and opponents he would have to face each game. Growing up in Lithuania, he did not grow up spending his nights watching the NBA like the rest of the league. Even during that first season, Valanciunas’ coachability was evident. If he would struggle in his first meeting with an elite big man he’d be much improved in subsequent matchups against that same opponent. Raptors head coach Dwane Casey makes no secret of his appreciation for veteran players, but he has praised Valanciunas’ tireless work ethic all along. The work has paid off. In his third season, via Synergy Sports, Valanciunas ranked 10th in the league among players who averaged at least 10 possessions per game. Despite averaging just 3.9 post ups per game, he averaged 1.023 points per possession in those post up situations. Cleveland’s Kevin Love was second with 0.983 points per post up possession. Los Angeles Clippers big man DeAndre Jordan was the only player with a higher field goal percentage during the 2014-2015 season, as Valanciunas shot 57 percent from the floor and 78 percent from the free throw line. He had Toronto’s highest PER with a Player Efficiency Rating of 20.60. He just turned 23 in May and has played in 74.3 games in his first three seasons. “JV is 23 years old,” Raptors general manager Masai Ujiri said. "The contract gives him some security and lets him now concentrate on playing basketball and winning. It’s big for us, but we feel he made progress. He’s a great kid. Loves the city, loves the fans, loves everything about Toronto and that’s what we want to embrace here. He showed us a lot on the basketball court and we think he’ll get better.” Valanciunas averaged 26 minutes per game last season, but just 5.1 minutes per fourth quarter. With Amir Johnson now a Celtic and free agent big men Tyler Hansbrough in Charlotte and Chuck Hayes in Los Angeles, the Raptors will need to rely on Valanciunas a lot more in crunch time this season. In addition to offseason workouts with Jack Sikma where the two worked on how to read defenders as well as trying to improve his midrange shot, Raptors assistant coach Nick Nurse went to Lithuania to get in more one-on-one work with Valanciunas. It was the first time he’d had an assistant fly to Lithuania with him during the summer. “I’m looking forward to get better, to be a better player,” Valanciunas said. “Now everything is in the right place. We’ve just got to bring it to the court and do our job. I want to win. I’m going to do everything to be successful. Valanciunas is excited to join new additions DeMarre Carroll, Cory Joseph, Bismack Biyimbo and Luis Scola as well as rookies Delon Wright and Norman Powell. Like the rest of the returning players, he’s eager to get back on the court and erase the sting of last season’s first-round exit. “I think we were going away from the defence, especially at the end of the season a little bit,” he said. “Now we’ve refreshed. We’ve got a great group and I think we’re going to do a much better job defensively. That’s what we needed to get better at.” “We’ve got to do our job,” he continued. “We’ve got to change that and (we) have a new group of people. We’ve got to do it better.”