Scottie Barnes hasn’t suited up for the Toronto Raptors since March 1 after suffering a season-ending hand injury.
He was close to returning before the end of last season, but the Raptors played it safe and kept him sidelined heading into the offseason.
Barnes missed training camp and the Raptors first preseason game for a personal reason.
However, the 23-year-old is expected to make his long awaited return to the court on Oct. 11 in Washington against the Wizards.
“I’m just happy to be playing again. It’s been a really long time since I got hurt. So to be able to go play in an actual game it’s going to be super fun, super exciting for me. I’ve been playing with these guys all summer and you know just willing to go out there work and build things out there on the floor,” Barnes told reporters.
Barnes is eager to get back to work. In his third season in the league, he had a breakout year. He averaged a career-high 19.9 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.0 assists in 60 games for Toronto.
“I’ve been missing it each and every single day,” Barnes said. “Just can’t wait to get that feeling back again. That’s gonna be great. It’s gonna be special. I’m grateful for everything.”
The Raptors are going to need Barnes if they want to be competitive this season. He was the team’s best player and made everyone around him better.
“I want to see that he’s embracing his role, that he’s playing for the team, that he’s playing the right way and making right decisions,” Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic told reporters. “I believe that Scottie is (a) player that’s a very unselfish player, team-oriented player, and I want him to continue being that.”
Barnes took a giant step forward last season on the defensive end as well. He was routinely the team’s anchor on defense and Rajakovic wants to see Barnes get even better on that end.
“He also brings a lot of intensity for our defense, he’s good rim protector as well and this season for him, it’s going to be one of his goals is going to be improving his defense to elite-level to be recognized as Defensive Player of the Year,” Rajakovic said.
Barnes will use Friday’s preseason game against the Wizards to get back into things. With the Raptors regular season opener set for Oct. 23, it will be important for Barnes to ramp up his workload.
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