The Toronto Raptors fell short to the Boston Celtics 115-111 to drop to 1-2 in the preseason.
The Celtics were on the second night of a back-to-back and rested seven of its top eight players. Meanwhile, the Raptors were without Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Bruce Brown, Kelly Olynyk and Ja’Kobe Walter.
The Raptors still had the talent advantage going up against the likes of Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser and many of the Celtics G League players.
However, Scottie Barnes and company got off to a rough start and never recovered. The Raptors lack of spacing and three-point shooting got them in a hole, as Toronto was outscored by 24 points from three.
Terrible first-half
It was concerning to see the Raptors get blown out by the Celtics players who won’t even be in their rotation. The Raptors were shorthanded too, but they still had key rotation players playing such as Barnes, Jakob Poeltl and Gradey Dick. The Raptors did make the game more respectable in the second-half, but being down by as many as 34 points to the Celtics’ backups is unacceptable.
Gradey Dick finishes strong
Dick had a rough first-half against Boston and struggled on the defensive end as well. However, the sophomore turned it around in the second-half, hitting four three-pointers to finish with a team-high 18 points.
Rookies Jamal Shead & Jonathan Mogbo show promise
Shead continues to be a big bright spot for the Raptors. He turned in another quality outing. He finished with 14 points, 5 assists and hit a triple. Also, Mogbo had his best game in a Raptors uniform. He finished with 8 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists in 21 minutes.
Off night for Scottie Barnes
Barnes continues to work his way back into form. The All-Star had a tough outing in this one, scoring 10 points in 26 minutes and he was a minus-27 on the court. There’s no need to panic since this is Barnes’ second game back from surgery, but it’ll be important for him to get back into rhythm with the regular season fast approaching.
Next on tap
The Raptors will finally return home on Oct. 15 to take on the Celtics once again. This will be the Raptors second last preseason game before they wrap up their preseason schedule on Oct. 18 against the Brooklyn Nets.
Have you subscribed to the Raptors Nation YouTube channel? It’s the best way to watch interviews, exclusive coverage from events, participate in live shows, and more!
