Raptors rookie Collin Murray-Boyles laughing about what it was like trying to guard Rockets big man Steven Adams:

“He’s insanely strong. My wrist are sore right now trying to bo him out… I was asking him what’s his routine mid game.” pic.twitter.com/FUBr3XjO39

— Toronto Star Sports (@StarSports) October 30, 2025

Collin Murray-Boyles earned his first career start on Wednesday for the Toronto Raptors, and the rookie was left rather amazed by the size of the Houston Rockets.

Murray-Boyles produced 13 points, two assists and one rebound in the 139-121 loss at Scotiabank Arena. He finished by shooting 5-of-8 from the field, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range, in 25 minutes in place of Jakob Poeltl.

The No. 9 pick was matched up with the likes of Steven Adams, Kevin Durant and Alperen Şengün throughout the contest. Up against such a tall lineup, which outrebounded the Raptors 53-22, Murray-Boyles was left to just laugh about attempting to defend Adams & Co.

“He is insanely strong,” Murray-Boyles said. “My wrists are sore right now, trying to box him out and tussle with him. It is impossible. His strength, I didn’t think it was like that; couldn’t move him. Nobody could get over his screens. I was asking him what his routine is mid-game because it is insane. With him, and you have to worry about Şengün and K.D., it is crazy what they got.”

Murray-Boyles missed the first two games of the season because of a right forearm muscle strain. He went scoreless in his debut on Sunday, but he bounced back with a 13-point effort on Monday in a loss to the San Antonio Spurs.

The 20-year-old has been commended for his ability to score in various ways, while also defending on the other end of the court. He has also gotten off to a strong start shooting the ball after connecting on six of his first 10 attempts from beyond the arc.

Murray-Boyles enjoyed the challenge of facing off against the Rockets’ front line so early in the season. He was curious to see where the Raptors stacked up against a projected playoff team and is now eager to see how they can improve moving forward.

“That is a great challenge, especially early on, for this team going up against a team that is going to make it really deep in the playoffs, I think,” Murray-Boyles said. “Really good for us early on (to) see where we are at (and) how we can improve. You never know the type of lineups you’re going to go up against every night, so going up against a supersized lineup like this showed us what we need to do better, what we did good. We can watch film to see how we can improve on that.”