Immanuel Quickley seems to be nearing a return for the Toronto Raptors.
Quickley is still wearing the brace on his left thumb, but was practicing on Tuesday.
Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic said Quickley’s ramping up and is expected to be cleared soon.
“Very soon he’s gonna be cleared for a full contact and we expect to see him playing some of the preseason games as well,” Rajakovic said at the OVO Athletic Centre, via Sports Illustrated’s Aaron Rose.
Scottie Barnes was also at practice with Gradey Dick. Both players were getting up plenty of three-point shots, per Rose.
The Raptors are currently dealing with several injuries. Ja’Kobe Walter has been dealing with a shoulder sprain Bruce Brown is recovering from offseason knee surgery and now RJ Barrett will miss time as well. He sustained a shoulder injury during the Raptors preseason opener against the Washington Wizards. Barrett collided with Wizards’ center Jonas Valanciunas. Barrett will miss the remainder of the preseason.
“They’re gonna go week by week. He will be able to do a lot of other stuff, conditioning-wise, and to address his health everywhere else, with his knees and strength and all of that. So once he comes back, he’s gonna be in a great position to continue,” Rajakovic said of Barrett, via Rose.
The average timeline of Barrett’s injury is 2-6 weeks so it seems likely that he will miss the start of the season.
The Raptors regular season begins on Oct. 23 when they host the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Darko Rajakovic wants RJ Barrett’s defense to rise
Darko Rajakovic has high hopes for RJ Barrett this season.
However, he wants to see Barrett elevate his game. Rajakovic recently talked about how he wants Barrett’s defensive effort to rise.
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