The Toronto Raptors are once again eyeing an NBA title contender status in the Eastern Conference.
For years, the Toronto Raptors were one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference. In fact, they even won the 2019 NBA Championship.
At the time, the Raptors were coached by Nick Nurse, but the team has since moved on from their championship-winning head coach.
Instead, Darko Rajakovic is currently the head coach of the Raptors ahead of the 2025-26 season.
Photo by Cole Burston/Getty ImagesDarko Rajakovic’s NBA coaching experience
Rajakovic arrived in the NBA ahead of the 2014-15 season as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder. At the time, he was an assistant coach for the team.
He continued that responsibility for the next five seasons before leaving to join the Phoenix Suns for the 2019-20 season.
Rajakovic’s tenure in Phoenix lasted just one year before he found himself on the Memphis Grizzlies‘ coaching staff in the same capacity.
The Serbian coach would end up staying for three years in Memphis before finally landing his first-ever head coaching job with the Raptors.
Yes, it took Rajakovic more than a decade to go from coaching an overseas team to finally showcasing his tactics on the biggest basketball stage in the world.
Darko Rajakovic isn’t off to a good start with the Toronto Raptors
Since becoming a head coach, Rajakovic has earned a platform to share his honest thoughts on NBA players and teams.
Be it expressing his gratitude for being able to coach against Stephen Curry or calling out unwarranted hate against Jayson Tatum, Rajakovic is one vocal head coach.
But when it comes to his tenure with the Raptors, the team has gone 55-109 in his first two seasons behind the clipboard.
Despite that, Raptors fans shouldn’t worry too much as the team is going through a rebuilding phase right now.