With Scottie Barnes back, let the experiments begin for the Toronto Raptors

TORONTO In a rebuilding scenario, there is the urge to make every positive sign seem bigger than it is.

The Toronto Raptors have had plenty of those signs this year.

Gradey Dick s game has expanded.

RJ Barrett s passing has improved.

Jakob Poeltl is eating on the offensive end.

Ochai Agbaji looks like a long-term rotation player.

A few of the teams rookies have shown flashes of being contributors.

Advertisement With all of that said, the Raptors came into Thursdays game against the Minnesota Timberwolves with the NBA s 17th-ranked offence, 26th-ranked defence, 24th-ranked defensive rebounding rate and a dreadful record.

Rebuilding is about experimenting, squinting and hoping.

The Raptors might be the happiest possible version of a bad team, but theyve still been bad and fairly traditional by necessity.

After missing 11 games with an orbital bone fracture, Scottie Barnes returned for the Raptors in their 110-105 win.

Barnes had 17 points, six rebounds and three rebounds in 27 minutes.

Forget about Thursday.

Now, finally, we can put what we have seen without Barnes into proper context.

Man, that was fun.

...

Having Scottie in the lineup for us, RJ Barrett said, hes a special player.

While there is understandably some minor angst about how everything might work offensively in the half court they looked more comfortable without Barnes than with him early on Barnes defensive attributes should make up for that in the short term.

As laudably as Agbaji has played this season, Barnes size makes him the teams most versatile defender by a wide margin.

(The developing Jonathan Mogbo is likely second.) Though Barnes is best used as a free safety type, coach Darko Rajakovic can employ him in whichever role makes most sense on the night.

Barnes started on Julius Randle but spent time on Anthony Edwards , among others.

That, in turn, will allow Rajakovic to get more experimental with his lineups, which rebuilding teams should do, if possible.

After hardly playing without a more traditional point guard all season, the Raptors started with Barnes and Barrett as the two primary playmakers, next to a pair of wings, Dick and Agbaji, plus a traditional centre in Poeltl.

All that lineup is, at its core, is the five best players the Raptors have available right now.

But its Barnes guard-like traits on both ends that allow the coach to consider it in the first place.

Davion Mitchell moved to the bench.

SCOTTIE B pic.twitter.com/6mPiFYUvP9 Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) November 22, 2024 (I) like to see Davion coming off the bench, which is his role as a backup point guard, and what he can bring to the team, Rajakovic said.

I also wanted to see Scottie having the ball more in his hands and RJ in that first unit.

Adding some size is not a bad thing, as well.

Perhaps it will turn out that they are overmatched from a ballhandling perspective in this form and will need a point guard on the floor to start as Immanuel Quickley recovers from his elbow injury.

That is fine.

The point is to try.

Advertisement Besides, Barnes does the most important thing for this team offensively for now: push the pace.

That was evident on the Raptors first possession, when he took a pass from Poeltl and got the Raptors running, getting Dick a layup .

Were playing to our strength every time we play fast, Barnes said.

We have a lot of guys that can run.

So weve got to run and get the ball out.

He is limited in what he can do in the half court without the injured Quickley, whose shooting threat unlocks so much of what the Raptors are hoping to do on offence.

We didnt see many Barnes drives or post-ups against Minnesotas set defence.

The Raptors were turning the ball over frequently Thursday, and that owed plenty to the lack of spacing on the floor, plus the unfamiliarity within a few of the lineups.

Barnes wasnt at his sharpest Thursday, as is to be expected after a 23-day layoff.

He was playing in shorter spurts, going against a long, pesky defensive team and trying to get a feel for his teammates again.

He still had some star moments, including a late turnaround jumper .

He nearly forced a late turnover by Randle.

The Timberwolves contributed to their own demise, but the Raptors have had a rough time closing out games, and Barnes was a factor in changing that.

Scottie is a high-IQ player with a lot of skill, Rajakovic said.

He just knows how to handle those situations.

He made it easier, for sure, said Barrett, who scored 12 points in the fourth quarter.

I was just kind of out there, chilling.

...

When you have a guy like that out there, it makes everybodys job easier.

Barnes mere presence offers the Raptors so many more options.

As he gets crisper, his presence will allow a fuller view of the Raptors, present and future, to come into sight.

Notes Barnes wore red goggles to protect his injured eye.

If he plays well enough, maybe they will become a fixture like Rip Hamiltons mask.

Lets dream.

I like my 6-foot-8 forwards to evoke Horace Grant.

Advertisement That is 20 consecutive wins for the Raptors over the Timberwolves in Toronto.

The Timberwolves last win in Toronto was Jan.

21, 2004.

Minnesota had a road win over the Raptors in the interim, but it was in Tampa Bay in 2021.

With Barnes back, Barrett (31 points, seven rebounds) and Poeltl (15 points, 12 rebounds) continued their excellent play.

Barrett showed some excellent composure in crunch time.

That is a smart cut from Chris Boucher , who used the attention the Timberwolves paid to Poeltl against them .

Boucher had 22 points.

The Raptors have a Miami Heat problem.

Their City Edition jerseys and court are indisputably excellent this year.

The NBA insists that teams change them every year because capitalism.

Inevitably, the Raptors will land on something worse.

It is the same issue the Heat faced with their Miami Vice jersey, which got worse with every version.

The Raptors wore the jerseys for the first time this season Thursday.

Somehow, the court is even better than the jerseys.

NBA, Raptors, listen to me: Keep these indefinitely.

Not for every game, but as their alternates for a few games per year.

This is the correct curveball look for the franchise.

Also, they play Northern Touch before introducing the starters when they wear these uniforms, and that should be a permanent change.

Dick has gotten better at dealing with physicality off the ball, but he has to be better with the ball in his hands .

Minnesota has plenty of handsy defenders, and Dick was not prepared.

Mogbo can feel good about the way he guarded Edwards here.

Mogbo has excellent mobility for a 6-9 dude.

He also did a good job as a playmaker in the middle of a Minnesota zone defence .

On the other hand, its been a rough go lately for fellow second-round rookie Jamal Shead .

The Raptors need him with Quickley out, but it feels like a stint with Raptors 905 would help him.

Hes making mistakes of commission, but mistakes nonetheless.

(Photo of Scottie Barnes and RJ Barrett: Dan Hamilton / Imagn Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.