There was never any doubt about Scottie Barnes’s talent as a defender and his potential as an all-around All-Star. There were, however, some doubts about his ability to be the top scorer on a competitive team.
He wasn’t the Raptors’ top scorer in the regular season—Brandon Ingram and RJ Barrett both averaged more points with 21.5 and 19.3, respectively—but Barnes still put up great numbers with 18.1 points on 50% shooting from the field, 7.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.5 blocks, and 1.4 steals.
Then, he took his scoring to another level in the playoffs, putting up at least 21 points in all but one game and logging a playoff career-high 33 points in a Game 3 victory. His breakout in the playoffs put a lot of people on notice who either don’t watch the Raptors much during the regular season or still held on to some doubts about his offense.
But the playoffs and the final stretch of the regular season also showed how taxing it was for Barnes to be the go-to defender on a team that feeds off its disruptive defense, a primary playmaker with Immanuel Quickley sidelined, and a high-level scorer.
Bryce Simon recently said on the Game Theory Podcast with Sam Vecenie, “Scottie Barnes may be your best player…But I don’t know that Scottie Barnes is your number-one scoring option to really compete at that level.”
Maybe he could be, but, more importantly, he shouldn’t have to be. The Raptors should be able to improve the offense around him.
The Raptors can’t ask Scottie Barnes to do everything
The Raptors probably can’t win at the highest level if Scottie Barnes isn’t aggressive offensively and looking to score. But they can’t expect him to do everything in high-pressure situations and carry a team with little offensive help.
This playoff run, Barnes had no other choice but to give it his all as a defender, playmaker, and scorer because the Raptors didn’t have much behind him. RJ Barrett was the only other player who averaged over 20 points in the playoffs, and the next-best scorer behind those two was a rookie reserve.
Requiring that kind of effort and production from Barnes doesn’t seem sustainable for more than one playoff series. Of course, things could have looked different if Brandon Ingram and Immanuel Quickley had been healthy for the playoffs. Quickley, especially, made a big difference for the Raptors’ offense during the regular season. With him sidelined for all seven games, they severely lacked great guard play. But even with Quickley available, the Raptors’ depth and talent at the guard spots pale compared to what the top teams in the NBA have to offer.
