TORONTO — The Toronto Raptors season struggled to attain lift-off nearly from the beginning, and after the staff introduced Scottie Barnes has a damaged hand, it could effectively find yourself crashing again to Earth with a thud.
The Raptors all-star ahead was recognized with a fracture to the third metacarpal bone of his left hand (the lengthy bone between the wrist and the knuckle of the center finger) late Friday night time, placing a ultimate sad-faced emoji on a recreation the place Toronto discovered themselves unable to take care of a visiting Golden State Warriors staff that was taking part in on the second night time of a back-to-back and had not arrived at their Toronto lodge till 7:15 a.m. resulting from mechanical points with their airplane leaving New York.
“The worst journey expertise I’ve ever been concerned with within the NBA,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr stated of airplane points pre-game.
The Raptors’ Friday didn’t end up a lot better.
Toronto ended up dropping the sport — their second straight — 120-105 to fall to 22-38 on the season, however the turning level of the night time and doubtlessly the season got here when Barnes injured his hand contesting Warriors ahead Jonathan Kuminga on the rim. Along with his proper hand excessive and on the basket, it appeared that Barnes’ decrease left hand could have been inadvertently kicked by teammate Immanuel Quickley, who was within the play and off stability.
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Barnes may very well be heard yelling in ache, and he instantly put each arms over his head and ran off the ground. He stayed behind the play and after the Raptors took a foul to cease the sport Barnes instantly headed for the locker room, trailed by medical employees.
How a lot does Barnes imply to the Raptors? The sport was tied 55-55 with 2:17 left to play within the second quarter when the damage occurred, and the Raptors led 64-61 at half.
Barnes didn’t return and the Warriors went up by 13 within the third quarter as Stephen Curry — taking part in in Toronto for the primary time since Recreation 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals — hit three fast triples. The Raptors couldn’t get the lead under double figures for the final 10 minutes of the sport. Barnes, who has began all 60 of the Raptors video games this season, completed with 10 factors, six rebounds and three assists in his 15:40 minutes of courtroom time and was the one Raptor to complete with a constructive level differential.
It’s been a pattern. Over the previous 20 video games, the Raptors have been outscored by 17.8 factors per 100 possessions with Barnes off the ground. He’s the staff’s second-leading scorer (20.3 factors per recreation) and second-leading rebounder (8.3 per recreation), and he leads Toronto in assists (6.1 per recreation), blocks (1.5 per recreation) and steals (1.3), reaching profession highs in all classes whereas being named an all-star for the primary time in his third season.
Warriors veteran ahead Draymond Inexperienced is among the many a number of elite gamers Barnes has drawn comparisons to for his multi-faceted recreation, and he sees nice issues.
“Scottie is an unimaginable participant… me taking part in the purpose ahead place, I’m not going to take a seat up right here and act like I used to be the primary one to ever do it, however I feel I’ve finished it slightly in a different way than most,” stated Inexperienced, a four-time champion, four-time all-star and eight-time all-defence choice recognized for his play-making on offence. “And he’ll take that to a different stage … I feel Scottie will do far more than I ever did.”
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The query now’s when Barnes will get to renew his ascent?
In line with damage analyst Jeff Stotts of instreetcloshes.com, the common time missed for an damage like Barnes’ that doesn’t require surgical procedure is 31 days. When surgical procedure is required that common goes as much as 41 days.
Given the Raptors have 22 video games and 44 days remaining of their season, ending up in Miami on April 14, it’s honest to marvel if Barnes has performed his final recreation for the Raptors this 12 months.
Actually the Raptors have little, if any, incentive to hurry him again, aside from maybe wanting to ensure he’s in game-ready situation to move into what can be one other vital low season of improvement for him.
There’s little or no at stake, competitively. The Twelfth-place Raptors are 4.5 video games behind the Tenth-place Atlanta Hawks for the ultimate spot within the play-in event, and a game-and-a-half behind Eleventh-place Brooklyn. The chances of constructing up 5 video games within the standings with 22 to play are fairly slim and doing it whereas leap-frogging one other staff makes them slimmer nonetheless. Doing it with out your finest participant?
The chances solely shrink.
In the meantime, the Raptors have the seventh-worst report within the NBA which is important as a result of they owe a first-round decide to the San Antonio Spurs if it lands exterior the top-six after the draft lottery. It’s unlikely the Raptors can end poorly sufficient to be ‘caught’ by any of the NBA’s backside 5 groups, but when they might conceivably slide again to sixth place (they’re two video games forward of Memphis), it might enhance the percentages of Toronto preserving their decide as soon as the ping-pong balls settle.
The Raptors have been steadfast that they’d push forward this season with no regard for the place they’d end concerning their draft decide, however the Barnes damage might change issues.
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It actually modified issues on Friday night time. The Raptors went from up-tempo and energized with Barnes on the ground to slower and fewer emphatic after his damage.
They may not have gained regardless. The Warriors have been preventing and scratching all season with the idea that the core of the staff that gained 4 titles in seven years — the final in 2022 — can nonetheless make some noise if the celebs align. They’ve gained 13 of their previous 16 video games, and eight straight on the street.
“We all know what the problem is forward,” stated Curry, who completed with a game-high 25 factors and 7 triples on 15 makes an attempt. “It does are inclined to convey the most effective out of that aggressive spirit each night time after we’re chasing now, looking for our approach into some playoff sequence and provides ourselves a swing at whoever we face. But it surely’s a gauntlet within the west and we’ve got to maintain performing the way in which we’re proper now if we need to have any probability of getting some post-season motion.”
The Raptors nearly actually gained’t have that to sit up for. It was a glimmer of hope with Barnes at his finest however solely mathematically in play now.
Greatest case? Barnes can get able to play in a month, end the season on a excessive be aware and head into the low season rested and able to assault the areas of his recreation that should be improved for him to be the form of participant the Raptors want him to be to return to aggressive relevance.
That and the Raptors slipping a spot or two within the standings and hoping they get fortunate within the draft lottery.
