The Toronto Raptors haven’t been able to avoid the injury bug.
Injuries ripped through the Raptors last season and this season the theme has been the same.
All-Star forward Scottie Barnes recently suffered an ankle injury, which will sideline him for multiple weeks. This occurred after he returned from an orbital fracture that caused him to miss 11 games earlier in the season.
He isn’t the only one who will miss time. Immanuel Quickley, who signed a five-year deal worth $175 million in July, has played in just 3 games so far and there is no timeline for his return as he is dealing with a partial tear in his UCL.
At no point this season has Barnes, Quickley and RJ Barrett played together. The last time the trio played together was on March 1.
This graphic by Sportsnet illustrates just how little BBQ has played together, overall. If you look at the Raptors trio including Jakob Poeltl and Gradey Dick (the Raptors projected starting 5), they have played just 4 minutes together:
It’s crazy that BBQ + Poeltl & Dick (Raptors ideal starting lineup) have only played 4 minutes together. pic.twitter.com/Tj90dGn8f6
— Luca Rosano (@lucarosano3) December 13, 2024
Bruce Brown hasn’t played all season for the Raptors as he is still recovering from offseason knee surgery.
The Raptors haven’t been able to see this current version of their team healthy, which is frustrating. However, it could also be a blessing in disguise as the Raptors are now in a prime position to land a top-5 pick in the upcoming 2025 NBA Draft if they continue this losing pace.
It’s been a bad year for the Raptors in terms of heath, but the team still has every reason to be optimistic about their future.
Chris Boucher likely to be traded after falling out of rotation
As a result of all of their injuries and losing, the Toronto Raptors might be aggressive sellers at the trade deadline.
One name to keep an eye on is veteran big man Chris Boucher who has recently fallen out of Toronto’s rotation.
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