TORONTO — With the sleep depraved out of their eyes and the caffeine flowing by their veins, the Toronto Raptors lastly wakened after halftime of their recreation in opposition to the Indiana Pacers.
NBA gamers work nights. There’s the land of the lengthy afternoon nap.
So after they get the chance to play a day recreation — Sunday’s pre-Tremendous Bowl tip-off was at 3 p.m. ET, their earliest begin of the season and one among simply six all 12 months earlier than 6 p.m. — it may take a short while to get the motors working.
As Brandon Ingram stated within the Raptors locker room: “Afternoon? That’s once I’m asleep.”
Take Scottie Barnes, who was shifting comparatively in gradual movement within the first half in opposition to the Pacers, as have been most of his teammates. By the point they have been heading in for the halftime break, the Raptors have been trailing the Pacers by two, having shot simply 7-of-12 from the free throw line and turning the ball over 11 occasions.
The perfect description of the primary half was ‘blah.’
Most of their wounds have been self-inflicted: dangerous passes by visitors; sloppy passes with no agency dedication, an absence of physique and ball motion resulting in a 24-second violation. For his half, Barnes was simply effective, having contributed eight factors, 4 rebounds and only one help in his 18 minutes, nevertheless it wasn’t like he was affecting the sport in any important means. The Raptors misplaced his minutes by 4 factors.
It’s not nice at one of the best of occasions — the Raptors go as Barnes goes, most video games — however in opposition to the Pacers (13-40)? Indiana arrived with the worst file within the Jap Convention and has all the motivation on the earth to maintain dropping, having made a commerce involving their first-round decide in a extremely touted 2026 draft with protections that permit them to maintain it if the choice falls within the prime 4.
Not good in any respect. Taking part in the Pacers at house is a recreation the Raptors completely should win.
Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic gave the previous, ‘nap time over’ speak at halftime.
“Okay, it’s time to get up. It’s a 3 p.m. recreation, however excellent news, now it’s 4:30, so we’re going to be effective within the second half,” stated Rajakovic.
Barnes acquired the message. Like an enormous canine grabbing a bit canine by the neck, the Raptors’ multi-skilled ahead picked the sport up and shook it.
The consequence was about nearly as good a nine-minute flurry of basketball as you’re prone to see this season. It was the type of dominance that makes you imagine that Barnes’ ceiling is borderline limitless.
There have been one-man quick breaks that led to dunks. There have been spinning submit strikes that led to dunks. There have been offensive rebounds that he put again for scores and offensive rebounds he kicked out for wide-open threes by his teammates. There have been defensive rebounds adopted by completely calibrated, three-quarter-court passes to teammates and definitive blocks by Barnes when the Pacers dared problem him on the rim.
By the point he was completed, the Raptors had turned their halftime deficit right into a 16-point benefit, and Barnes’ explosion was the distinction in what ended up being a snug 122-104 win that undoubtedly made the Tremendous Bowl chilli go down a bit higher.
Barnes completed with 25 factors, 14 rebounds, six assists, two steals and 4 blocks on 12-of-20 capturing. He ended up plus-22 in his 33 minutes and plus-16 in his quarter-hour after halftime.
“I simply do what the sport calls for from me,” stated Barnes, who’s among the many league leaders in factors, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals on a Raptors group that’s holding down fifth place within the Jap Convention.
He wasn’t the one contributor. Sandro Mamukelashvili continued his red-hot capturing off the bench as he scored 17 factors in 21 minutes, pulling down six of his 9 appears, together with three of 5 from deep. Since Jan. 18, the massive Georgian is averaging 15.7 factors per recreation and capturing 47 per cent from deep and 56 per cent general. It’s a stage of play that explains why the Raptors have been hesitant so as to add important wage on the commerce deadline, given each extra greenback is cash they may want to make use of to re-sign Mamukelashvili subsequent summer time.
It’s a part of the rationale why buying Trayce Jackson-Davis grew to become a most popular answer on the commerce deadline. Since he’s acquired a group choice on the final 12 months of his contract for $2.4 million, the Raptors can afford to maintain him or — in a pinch — transfer on in the event that they want the sources elsewhere.
Based mostly on the smallest attainable pattern measurement, they may need to take a protracted look. The six-foot-10 centre completed with 10 factors and 10 rebounds — eight on the offensive finish — in his quarter-hour. His contributions is perhaps extra important if Collin Murray-Boyles misses extra time together with his troublesome left thumb — he needed to depart the sport within the first quarter and didn’t return.
Rajakovic goes to let Jackson-Davis play earlier than speeding to any conclusions on the 25-year-old. “I simply need to let him be,” he stated. “I need to coach him. I need to assist him. I need to construct him and see the place we go. I don’t need, primarily based on one good recreation or unhealthy recreation, to move any judgment on him. I need to see a piece of 10, 15 video games and see how he grows with us.”
However Rajakovic has no such reservations about expounding on Barnes, whom he has supported loudly since he started teaching him two seasons in the past. He’s defended Barnes in opposition to unhealthy refereeing, promoted him as an all-star and all-defence candidate, and on Sunday took it a large step additional.
“I inform you what, Scottie is defensive participant of the 12 months. Scottie is an all-star. Scottie goes to be NBA Finals MVP sooner or later. Scottie goes to MVP of this league sooner or later,” stated Rajakovic. “I’m calling it now. You’ll be able to write down the date once I stated that. Scottie is just not even near the place he’s going to be when he’s 27 and 28. There’s a lot he’s bettering, week by week.”
They’re daring declarations. If Rajakovic is true, the Raptors will win a championship led by Barnes, and he’ll find yourself within the Corridor of Fame. Finals MVPs are awarded to Finals winners, and league MVPs find yourself within the Corridor of Fame. He can be one of the best Raptor ever.
For his half, Barnes is appreciative of his coach’s assist: “That’s my coach, man, he’s all the time supporting us, He’s all the time acquired our again. That’s Darko.”
However for Barnes, the trail to any type of success can solely come by profitable and discovering methods to raise his group on a chilly Sunday in February when their mid-afternoon naps get messed with.
“We wanted (me) to rebound extra, we wanted some rim safety. It’s simply doing what the sport calls for,” he stated. “I used to be feeling it a bit bit, going downhill, attacking. We wanted to attain.”
It’s quick and concise and each phrase of it’s true. The Raptors have been shifting a bit gingerly, and Barnes was a human dose of vitality drink. As an alternative of making an attempt to attain or defend or make performs for others, he did all of it, proper when the Raptors wanted it.
It’s the type of factor that nice gamers do, and Barnes has proven that it’s a stage he can get to when wanted, and almost on demand.
Only a few can. His coach is perhaps on to one thing.
Thumbs down, thumbs up: At the very least this time, Murray-Boyles couldn’t blame anybody else. The final time the proficient rookie needed to depart the sport due to the sprain to his left thumb, which he’s been coping with since earlier than Christmas, it was as a result of Lakers star Luka Doncic chopped down on the ball so laborious it regarded like he was making an attempt to separate Murray-Boyles’ hand from his wrist. That blow saved him out of the lineup for 4 video games and has hampered him since. “I used to be doing the chopping this time,” he informed me within the Raptors locker room afterwards. There was no replace on his situation, aside from his thumb stays sprained, bruised and sore. You surprise if Murray-Boyles would possibly get Wednesday’s recreation in opposition to the Pistons off and provides his thumb 10 days to heal. Some excellent news, nonetheless, as centre Jakob Poeltl appears prone to return to the lineup on Wednesday. He was in consideration to play Sunday however was a late scratch. “He’s very, very shut,” stated Rajakovic.
Ironman Ingram: This time a 12 months in the past, you have been almost definitely to seek out Brandon Ingram within the Raptors dressing room studying a ebook. He was new to the group, having been acquired on the commerce deadline, and nonetheless out for the foreseeable future with a excessive ankle sprain that restricted him to 18 video games final season. “I used to be making an attempt to fill my time as greatest I might,” he informed me. “You get super-anxious making an attempt to get again on the ground, so I used to be simply making an attempt to arrange my thoughts, fill my time as greatest I might. I simply couldn’t wait to get again on the ground.” The ebook on Ingram, 12 months later, is that you could’t get him off the ground. Sunday’s matchup in opposition to the Pacers was his 52nd recreation of the season, a workload that saved him among the many busiest gamers within the league. He got here into Sunday’s recreation thirteenth in whole minutes. It’s essentially the most video games he’s performed earlier than the all-star break since his rookie season in Los Angeles. “This group welcomed me with open arms,” he stated, almost 12 months to the day since becoming a member of the Raptors. “The teaching workers, the coaching workers, the followers,” he stated. “This is among the greatest strikes I’ve made in my NBA profession. “
Nembhard working with it: All issues thought-about, Andrew Nembhard would moderately be competing for an opportunity to get again to the NBA Finals. However the Achilles tendon rupture suffered by Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton in Recreation 7 of the Finals modified every part for Indiana. They arrived in Toronto final within the Jap Convention and are successfully taking a spot 12 months, ready for Haliburton to get wholesome. The addition of centre Ivica Zubac on the commerce deadline (in a deal that despatched Montrealer Ben Mathurin to the Clippers) ought to assist them compete for a Finals spot subsequent season. Within the meantime, Nembhard has taken benefit of an enormous spike in offensive accountability with Haliburton out. He’s averaging 17.4 factors and seven.5 assists per recreation and capturing 36.4 per cent from three on 5.2 makes an attempt per recreation, all of that are profession highs. And with Haliburton out, he’s creating extra alternatives for himself than ever: solely 33.9 per cent of his makes this season have come from assisted baskets, in comparison with 47.4 per cent final 12 months. “I need to profit from my alternative,” Nembhard informed me. He’s doing that after which some.
