Jamal Shead has become an absolute draft steal for the Raptors

"Shead's tenacity and his ability to run the floor as a floor general are still very clear. He's been a huge help for the Raptors, especially as their bench unit has started to come together quickly. Shead's name can be found on various league-wide advanced stat leader boards, where he is currently top in the NBA in assist ratio at 43.2, and seventh in the NBA for assist to turnover ratio at 3.9."

"Within the Raptors' ranks, Shead is third in assists per game with an average of 5.0. He's behind the team leader, Immanuel Quickley, who averages 6.1 assists per game, and just behind Scottie Barnes, who averages 5.3 assists per game. The rest of Shead's 2025-26 stats so far include 6.2 points per game, with a solid 43.3 percent field goal efficiency and 42.1 percent from three. He's also averaging 1.7 rebounds and nearly a steal per game at 0.8, all in about 18.1 minutes of play on average."

Coach Darko Rajakovic often experiments with lineups, creating opportunities for players like Gradey Dick, Ja'Kobe Walter, Sandro Mamukelashvili, and rookie Collin Murray-Boyles to compete for minutes. Jamal Shead was expected to fill a major backup guard role, and that expectation has held through the first 14 games. Shead's tenacity and ability to run the floor as a floor general have accelerated bench cohesion. He ranks first in the NBA in assist ratio (43.2) and seventh in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.9). He averages 5.0 assists, 6.2 points, 43.3% FG, 42.1% 3PT, 1.7 rebounds, and 0.8 steals in 18.1 minutes per game.

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