Game Plan | Summer League | Toronto Raptors + Sun Life

Game Plan | Summer League | Toronto Raptors + Sun Life

When I first got to NBA summer league, it was all new to me and I was definitely nervous. Didn’t know what to expect, but my mindset was to play my game and prove myself. Heading into NBA summer league and having a player like Jacobe was something exciting for us. One of the things that the Raptors do exceptionally well um is we really provide a holistic approach and holistic game plan for our athletes. So, we actually sort of work together to say here are these goals for Jacobe, then give him his game plan for summer league itself. I remember his smile. First time I spoke to him, I said, “Here we go, man. We really got to get after this.” And the smile he gave back to me gave me confidence and me comfort to say, “All right, this is going to work.” He just told me, “Be myself. We’re here to help you.” That kind of eased my mind on a lot of things. NBA Summer League was this chance to give him information. It was talking about what we were playing. We know the opponents. We know who you’re going to be guarding. So, giving him the vision of what it’s going to look like to help prepare him to take that next step ready to play. They’re literally just giving you the cheat sheet. You just got to follow it and then run with it. The main focus that they wanted me to always focus on was defense. Jacobe came with knowledge and a skill set. He knew how to score, but he wasn’t ready to defend with the physicality and the force that you need to play against people that are bigger and stronger and faster. And that was a real sort of like eye opening moment for him. Being successful is not easy. And having a game plan that helps you to be successful, having a game plan that helps you to learn what you need to do to accomplish the goal is critically important. Get a game plan for your life with Sunlife.

Raptors rookie Ja’Kobe Walter stepped into his first NBA Summer League with more than just talent—he came with a Game Plan for success. Guided by Assistant Coach Jama Mahalela, Ja’Kobe embraced the grind, locked in on the details, and committed to showing up ready. Get a game plan for your life, with Sun Life. #Raptors #TorontoRaptors #GamePlan #SunLife