D-League Diary No. 3: Scott Suggs gives an inside look at Raptors 905

I’ll admit it. I had the Raptors 905 being one of the top teams in the league coming into the season. The wealth of talent there is undeniable, but chemistry is a fickle mistress and the team just hasn’t been able to put it all together yet.

The 905 head into the D-League Showcase with a record of 5-14 and frankly, they are struggling to score with an average of 98.8 points per game. That doesn’t sound like a particularly low number, but this league is all about running-and-gunning, and that’s proven in the fact that the 905 are one of only four teams averaging less than 100 points per game. Coincidentally, none of those teams has more than five wins right now.

With that said, they still have time to turn it around and Scott Suggs, who we have been following around this season, continues to put up big numbers for the club. The 905 guard has been gracious enough to provide us with first-hand insight and knowledge of the expansion club, and this time around he focused more on the people and fun times he’s having with the team.

Diary Entry No. 3

Hello and Happy New Year to everyone out there! I hope you all had an amazing time with family/friends/loved ones! Sorry it has been a minute since I’ve had a chance to sit down and write another entry, but I promise to be better from here on out. That will be part of my New Years Resolution. Lol!

Let’s see, though, last time I believe I said I would do something a little different and give you guys another perspective as to what life is really like in the D-League, so I guess I’ll talk about that and the bball side as well.

Unfortunately for us (on the basketball side of things), December wasn’t the best month in the win-loss column. We’ve definitely been in most of the games we’ve played, but we just haven’t been able to get that one last stop or one last bucket to get us over the hump and secure a win. Despite that, I have GOT to give our coaching staff a HUGE standing ovation for how they keep our team ready day in and day out. Despite losing so much they have done an absolutely amazing job teaching, coaching, and holding guys accountable, but also keeping things positive at the same time. And if you’ve ever been on a team where you’ve lost a lot, I’m sure you can attest to how EXTREMELY difficult that is to manage as a coach.

So real round of applause to Jesse Mermuys (head coach), Nate Mitchell, Tim Lewis, and David Gale. We’re definitely going to have games start going in our way during this latter half of the season and the coaches will be a big reason why.

Besides games and practices, life in the D-League gives you a nice amount of free time. I usually do some reading (currently working my way through finishing the Old Testament in the Bible. I’m in the book of Nehemiah as we speak. Also reading a book called Relentless), play video games (Fallout 4 right now on PS4), or talk with my family on the phone. One of my brothers is a freshman at Bradley this year playing basketball (Ronnie Suggs) so we talk about similar things as far as how the season is going and stuff like that. I have two other younger brothers Skyler (24), who plays football at Lindenwood University, and Cason (16), who is a sophomore on varsity at Washington High School.

A lot of testosterone in the house when we’re all back like we were for Christmas! Lol. Which was a great time by the way! We do a game called the Money Tree, which is always fun.

Alright, just a short insider on the team. I’d say the funniest guys are probably Michale Kyser, Ronald Roberts, Jay Harris, and Melvin Johnson III. Melvin and Jay together could probably have their own series on TV and it’d be a hit! I don’t know how they come up with some of they stuff they do, but it’s hilarious. I’ll see if I can get a video or something of them next time.

Anyway that’s it for now! Sorry, I know that was long. Lol! But we’re heading to the showcase in a couple days so I think I’ll write again after that is done. Maybe in about a week!

God Bless!