Raptors’ Greg Monroe has chosen to go off the beaten path

It was the summer of 2015, a life-changing time for Greg Monroe, perhaps the defining moment of his NBA career.

He was a free agent and a promising player, at times a dominant big man who had been part of a growing program in Detroit. Untold fame and riches awaited.

The New York Knicks came calling, the Los Angeles Lakers expressed serious interest — two marquee franchises in glamorous cities who wanted to pay him a king’s ransom.