Raptors HC Darko Rajakovic’s blunt reaction to Immanuel Quickley finishing Magic game on bench

On Monday evening, the Toronto Raptors picked up another win with a thrilling 107-106 home victory over the Orlando Magic. The Raptors trailed this game by as many as 21 points on the second night of a back to back, but the win was secured when Magic forward Paolo Banchero’s three-pointer clanked off the rim at the buzzer.

Immanuel Quickley was huge in the Raptors’ win over the Golden State Warriors on Sunday, scoring 27 points in that victory, but he was very quiet in the game against the Magic, scoring just five points on 2/12 shooting from the field, and ending the game on the bench during crunch time.

After the game, head coach Darko Rajakovic was asked about what went into the decision to keep Quickley on the sidelines.

“Because Jamal Shead was on the floor instead,” he said, per Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports on X, formerly Twitter.

Quickley has been solid for the Raptors so far this season, but Shead’s defense and playmaking have at times provided some qualities to this Raptors team that Quickley is unable to bring to the table.

Shead scored 19 points to go along with four rebounds and five assists in the win over the Magic on Monday, and has had a propensity for making some clutch plays all year for the Raptors in 2025-26.

The Raptors now sit at 20-14 on the season, well above where most pundits expected them to be at this point in the campaign. Toronto seems to have shaken off brutal losses to the Washington Wizards and the Brooklyn Nets last week, having knocked off two playoff opponents in the Warriors and the Magic over their last two games.

The Raptors will next take the floor on New Year’s Eve for a home game against the Denver Nuggets, which will tip off at 7:30 pm ET.

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