Next season is an important one for Darko Rajakovic, Scottie Barnes and the Toronto Raptors.
With Brandon Ingram a part of the team now, Toronto is looking to become more of a serious threat contending for a playoff spot.
However, Barnes remains the team’s leader despite being only 23-years-old. His ability to do essentially everything on the floor is impressive and remains a vital piece to the Raptors success.
Despite his worst shooting season, optimism remains once the team is fully healthy. Head coach Rajakovic has not lost any faith as he spoke highly of his young star, calling him a ‘unicorn,’ via TSN’s Josh Lewenberg:
“Scottie Barnes is a unicorn. I love Scottie Barnes. I love everything he does. Scottie Barnes is the reason our defense was so good and improving this season because Scottie Barnes puts so much into it… Scottie Barnes is a leader of our group.”
Health has been kind to the Raptors as of late, but hopefully all the pieces come together next year. If that happens, Barnes’ play could skyrocket with complimentary pieces around him.
Having opposing teams not focus solely on Barnes will help tremendously by having capable scorers in Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett and Ingram.
Only thing available right now is hope and those in the organization seem extremely optimistic for next season. After this year featuring a ton of losses, hopefully, the Raptors are able to provide that hope on the floor with Barnes at the helm.
Brandon Ingram praises Scottie Barnes’ mentality
At the trade deadline, the Raptors took a gamble on bringing in Brandon Ingram to add more of a veteran presence. Despite being injured, Toronto believes Ingram will be instrumental to the team’s success next year.
Although he has only been with the team for a few months, the forward is already noticing Scottie Barnes’ key characteristics, recently complimenting his mentality as a player.
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