Ochai Agbaji stands tall defensively for Raptors

Ochai Agbaji may not be the tallest player on the court, but that won't deter him from defending some of the NBA's top forwards.

In the Toronto Raptors’ 119-118 preseason win against the Boston Celtics on Tuesday, Agbaji primarily guarded All-Star forwards Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Standing at six-foot-five, Agbaji is an inch shorter than Brown and three inches shorter than Tatum, but he is eager to take on the challenge.

“I embrace that every single night,” Agbaji stated. “That’s the fun in this, showing up and having those matchups, having the defending champs and knowing that you got to turn it up to a different level.

“It’s just always fun, whatever matchup it is, whether it’s them or Kevin Durant or whoever it is, it’s just always fun to match up with them.”

Last season, after being traded from the Utah Jazz to the Raptors on February 8, Agbaji averaged 6.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 27 games. Although he played as a shooting guard during those games, his natural position, he is expected to face bigger players this season due to the Raptors’ relatively smaller roster.

“It’s got to be a helpers’ mentality on defence,” Agbaji explained. “Everyone’s obviously in that helping mindset ready to take cover whenever their man is in a post-up situation or gets beat off the ball.

“That’s just how it is, and it’s got to be a collective effort every night.”

Brown averaged 23 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 3.6 assists during his third All-Star campaign last season, while Tatum received MVP votes and was named an All-Star for the fifth year in a row, averaging 26.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 4.9 assists.

Despite facing these two offensive powerhouses, Agbaji recorded a game-high plus-29 defensive rating on Tuesday, successfully limiting Brown to 19 points and Tatum to 24 points.

Agbaji contributed 16 points, five rebounds, and three assists in the game, shooting 7 of 11 overall and hitting 1 of 4 from three-point range.

“For me, the priority is what he’s doing defensively, and he affected the game in a big, big way,” said Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic. “Tonight, he was also able to score in transition and create those opportunities.

“He can do so many other things that can affect our game (besides) shooting.”

The Raptors will play their final preseason game against the Nets in Brooklyn on Friday.