There are big differences with the Raptors 905 now, and when current assistant coach Ashton Smith played for the G League team in its inaugural season six years ago.
The staff size has doubled, his former coach Nathaniel Mitchell is an assistant under Nick Nurse with the Raptors, and the club is returning to play in Mississauga after two years away due to COVID-19.
The one thing that remains the same is the excitement.
“Everybody is ready to get out and actually compete and play,” says Smith, who is in his first year on the staff under head coach Patrick Mutombo.