Toronto Raptors star small forward Brandon Ingram has high expectations for the team and himself in the 2025-26 NBA season. Ingram was traded to the Raptors in February in exchange for Bruce Brown, Kelly Olynyk, a 2026 first-round draft pick, and a 2031 second-round draft pick.
Soon, Brandon signed a three-year, $120 million contract extension with the Raptors. Unfortunately, Ingram couldn’t hit the ground running with Toronto last season due to an ankle injury that required a PRP injection, and he was sidelined for the remainder of the campaign. The 6’8″, 190 lbs athletic PF is healthy and has already hit the ground running with the Raptors during their preseason journey.
Brandon Ingram Has Bold Expectations With the Toronto Raptors
Ingram sat down with Canadian sportscaster Kate Beirness for an exclusive interview on TSN. During the interview, Kate asked Ingram to define what a successful season meant to him. Brandon replied, “We shoot for a championship every single year.” Furthermore, Ingram said that he wouldn’t be with the team if he didn’t believe they had the potential to consistently feature in the playoffs.
Brandon Ingram on what defines a successful season for the Raptors:
“We shoot for a championship every single year” pic.twitter.com/iz0MkJEMLj
— Oh No He Didn’t (@ohnohedidnt24) October 7, 2025
Next, Ingram was asked to voice his honest opinion on the team culture here in Toronto. He said, “It’s a top-notch organization. And I think the organization made an imprint on the team. And we work really, really hard. When I came here in February, that’s the first thing that I noticed.”
He added, “You know, in February, you don’t get a lot of teams that come and practice and play hard. So, you know, we have a lot of guys that really, really care about the game, not the politics of the game, but really care about the game. And when you have guys that are bought in and selfless, you start to see them from there.”
Ingram Reflected on the Raptors’ Preparations for the Upcoming Season
Kate asked Ingram how beneficial it was to be with this organization even when his court debut had been delayed from February to October. Brandon said, “I think it’ll show, you know, the chemistry we’ve built over the time I’ve been here.”
Enjoy pic.twitter.com/Y69UF0jT3D
— IngramAlerts (@IngramAlerts) October 7, 2025
He added, “We’ve been able to get on the floor a lot in September, some in July, around summer league time, and some in August, having guys come out in the summer and just playing some pickup basketball and doing some stuff off the floor. So everybody is really inviting, and I think it will pay dividends. We’ll be able to communicate with each other a little easier.”
The Raptors lost their opening preseason game against the Denver Nuggets, 112-108, and will now play their next preseason game against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center on Wednesday.
