Back during March Madness, Kansas State's Markquis Nowell exploded on the scene with his phenomenal play. He set an NCAA Tournament record for most assists in a game and led the Wildcats on a strong postseason run. His standout play wasn't enough to get him selected in the NBA Draft though, as for some reason NBA teams shy away from smaller guards.  Fortunately,  Nowell will still get his chance in the NBA as the Toronto Raptors quickly signed him to a two-way contract following the draft.

The Raptors have had success with small guards, most notably Fred VanVleet who blossomed into an All-Star caliber player. Ahead of Las Vegas Summer League, Nowell issued a strong take as to his feelings about joining the Raptors, per Amit Mann of Yahoo Sports Canada.

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“It just really clicked right away, I saw how much they really loved me and how much they really wanted me to be a Raptor. I didn't want to be anywhere else besides Toronto, so I'm glad I'm here,” Nowell said. “Just to see that an NBA team took a chance on me, you know it was like a full circle moment. Let alone it was a team that I wanted to go to and who took chances on smaller guards before me. So it was just a blessing for real.”

Markquis Nowell will spend most of his rookie season in the G League playing for the Raptors 905 as part of his two-way contract. He's one of the more seasoned and experienced rookies and he'll probably have every opportunity to contribute for Toronto from the get-go.