There were first day of school vibes all around as the Toronto Raptors reassembled for medicals and media day on Monday in downtown Toronto.

And like that first fall day back in the classroom, optimism abounded.

Here are the major takeaways as a 30-win team takes aim at adding at least 10 more victories to its ledger:

PLAYOFFS OR BUST?

While general manager Bobby Webster and head coach Darko Rajakovic both took more of a wait and see approach to the year, saying they want to see 1% improvement each week, the players have set the bar higher.

“I think our expectation of our team is definitely to make the playoffs and win some games in the playoffs,” Scottie Barnes said Monday after he was the first player on the podium.

“That’s the standard, that’s the bottom line with how talented we are and what we should be able to achieve. We’re hungry, we’ve got a lot to prove and we’re gonna go out and show it.”

Starting centre Jakob Poeltl, who last year made headlines for his honesty in saying the team didn’t have aspirations of competing for a title at that point, is happy with the progress since. “There’s been a very clear line for us to just attack this this season and try to get back into a winning position, we’ve talked about this development plan, and we knew it was going to be some some down phases, but we also knew that we didn’t want to be stuck in a rebuilding phase for a long time,” Poeltl said.

“Everybody seems to be dialled in on, we want to win this now. For us to be a winning team, we got to get back to the playoffs. I think that’s the obvious first step. We got to have one of those young team, breakout years where we might surprise some of the teams. And I think we have it in us. We just got to show it on the court.”

Added RJ Barrett: “We’re here to win. We’re not shying away from that challenge to (make) the playoffs.”

For his part, Rajakovic said he has “high ambitions” and “I expect us to be competitive in 82 games and to go out there to try to win every single game.”

INGRAM ITCHING TO PLAY

Brandon Ingram did not enjoy sitting in street clothes for months last season.

“I haven’t stepped on the floor since December 7th. This is what I live for,” said the new Raptor who suffered a bad ankle injury before joining the club. The injury eventually ended his season. “This is what I do, play basketball and watch basketball. It’s going to be exciting to get on the floor and compete.”

Poeltl thinks Ingram will make the team much better.

“Just his individual skill as a scorer, I think it’s the biggest thing that he brings us, a true three level threat, just getting the ball in almost any position and, he’ll make something good happen,” Poeltl said.

“What’s unique about him is how much he’s buying into our team style basketball and also defensive minded basketball … I know we’ve had limited time together, limited practice, but considering all that, we’ve actually developed some pretty quick chemistry out there, me personally, and I feel within that starting unit in general. So I’m really looking forward to actually testing it against other NBA teams.”

THE BIG QUESTION

Many are wondering if Ingram, Barrett and Barnes can co-exist on offence, particularly the two Duke products. Barrett even laughed about it, saying “I pass the ball” and Ingram said opponents “don’t expect me to pass the ball.”

But in reality, “I think we’re all pretty selfless,” Ingram said.

“We don’t have egos over here,” Barrett said. “It’s not about any single, individual player … Passing the ball is a huge thing. I’ve been on teams where the ball doesn’t move and nothing happens after that. Nobody cares. Now it’s just every man for himself. So it’s great to be on a team where we moved the ball and play defence. We care about each other, honestly. We’re all friends. We all hang out. Everything’s cool.”

NOT YOUR AVERAGE ROOKIE

Collin Murray-Boyles might have been a teenager still earlier this season, but make no mistake, he’s a bit of a man-child and has turned some heads in camp already.

“Colin is a high-level competitor. Colin is somebody who has unbelievable defensive instincts, from positioning, from using his hands, being disruptive, and he is as strong as it gets for a young player,” Rajakovic said.

“I did not see such a young player to be so strong (before). He’s not shying away from any contact. He likes to sneak in his nose and to go for every rebound, but also he’s very good passer, he’s very good playmaker, and somebody that I definitely believe that can help our team, and I’m really excited to see this growth as the season goes on.”

Rajakovic said nobody will be handed anything (including Murray-Boyles, the ninth pick of June’s draft), but expectations are he’ll get into the mix for minutes.

First he’ll have to beat out the more experienced Jonathan Mogbo for a reserve role.

FORGOTTEN MEN

Immanuel Quickley only played in 33 games last season and Gradey Dick had a rough sophomore campaign after an intriguing first month or so, but both could be important players this year. Quickley in particular.

“He’s been really good this summer and leading up to training camp,” Ingram said. “I got a chance to watch him in February, when I got here. How he controls the basketball game, getting his teammates involved. He’s speaking up in practices and making sure his voice is being heard, heard. It’s important for him to be a leader on our team. He has the basketball, he’s going to get everybody involved, and he’s going to score too.”

Meanwhile Dick still has plenty to prove, but has a lot of believers within the organization. Rajakovic said he likes to roll with a 10-player rotation, and rest assured he wants Dick to be a part of it.

“Year two in the NBA is always a tricky one,” Rajakovic said of Dick.

“I’m impressed how much he worked on his body. He added strength. I know him from Year One, when he was rookie here, he looked like a baby on a court. He’s now looking … much stronger, much more explosive. He knows what he’s doing, and this year is going to be unbelievable year for him to really focus on efficiency,” Rajakovic said. “How to find his spots on the court, and he did an outstanding job. He’s in a really good spot heading into the year.”