Champagnie earns final spot as Raptors waive Brown, Jackson and Wilson

MONTRÉAL, France — Justin Champagnie has secured the final spot on the Toronto Raptors' 15-man roster.

The Raptors announced Friday night they'd waived forwards Gabe Brown, Josh Jackson and D.J. Wilson. Their roster now stands at the league maximum 15 players, plus two two-way players.

The move seemed like a given during the Raptors' 137-134 win over the Boston Celtics in their pre-season finale in Montreal. Champagnie, who'd been battling nagging hip pain, played 25 minutes, finishing with seven points and six rebounds. It was only his second game of the pre-season.

Jackson played 11 minutes, while Brown and Wilson didn't play.

Champagnie, who fractured his thumb in Summer League this past off-season, appeared in 36 games for Toronto as a rookie last season.

Brown, who signed with the Raptors as an undrafted free agent after four seasons at Michigan State, averaged 4.0 points, 1.0 rebounds and 9.6 minutes in four pre-season games.

Jackson averaged 6.3 points, 1.8 rebounds and 13.1 minutes in the pre-season, scoring in double figures twice, including 13 points at Boston on Oct. 5. Jackson holds career averages of 11.3 points and 4.0 rebounds in five seasons with Phoenix, Memphis, Detroit and Sacramento.

Wilson posted averages of 6.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 10.2 minutes in pre-season action. He's averaged 4.4 points and 3.1 rebounds in five seasons with Milwaukee, Houston, and Toronto.

The Raptors open the regular season on Wednesday against the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 14, 2022.