Local NBA prospects Houstan, Nembhard keen on Raptors, but will they be available?

Local NBA prospects Caleb Houstan and Andrew Nembhard would cherish a chance to play for their hometown Raptors, but it remains to be seen if the guards will be available when Toronto makes its pick at the upcoming NBA draft.

The Raptors make their only selection early in the second round, 33rd overall, at the 2022 draft at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn on June 23. Toronto surrendered its first-round pick, which turned out to be 20th overall, when it acquired Thad Young from the San Antonio Spurs near last season's trade deadline.

Mock drafts have Houstan and Nembhard pegged between 25th overall and the first choice in the second round.

"I feel so grateful to be on this [Raptors] jersey," Nembhard said after he and Houstan worked out for the Raptors brass at the club's practice facility, the OVO Athletic Centre, on Friday.

The rise of the Raptors and their 2018-19 NBA championship season helped shape the basketball desire of the 19-year-old Houstan and 22-year-old Nembhard as they grew up in the nearby communities of Mississauga and Aurora, respectively.

"Me and my brother [Devan] stayed up later than we should have to watch most of the games," Houstan said. Devan, a defensive lineman, has committed to play football at the University of Notre Dame in the fall.

"The Raptors mean everything," added Nembhard, whose brother Ryan plays at Creighton University. "When I was real, real young, basketball was at a point where it wasn't that important [in Toronto]. You could see the growth and the love for the Raptors grow, especially with that championship recently."

Both know Raptors head coach Nick Nurse because of their links to the national team program. Houstan helped Canada win a bronze medal in the 2021 FIBA Under-19