3 important takeaways as Raptors lose insane game on national TV vs. Bucks
By Mike Luciano
Scottie Barnes and the Toronto Raptors had the chance to turn their whole season around if they were able to take down Giannis Antetokounmpo and the mighty Milwaukee Bucks. It took just a few minutes for all of the optimism to get sucked right out of the building in a humiliating fashion.
The Raptors made just two of their first 30 shots from the field, scoring just 12 points in the first quarter and wasting one of the finest defensive performances all season long. Naturally, after playing that poorly and trailing 90-72 with under three minutes to go, the Raptors rallied and took the game to overtime.
Unfortunately, Toronto couldn’t sustain that hot shooting into overtime. The Bucks pulled out a 104-101 overtime win, meaning that the Raptors now have the sixth-worst record in the NBA and a genuine shot at landing the ultimate NBA Draft prize in Victor Wembanyama.
This game is a perfect Raptors Rorschach test. Pessimistic fans will look at the pathetic shooting, while optimistic ones will bask in the awesomeness that was the comeback. Even when viewing this game through whatever prism you have, these three truths have become indisputable.
Toronto Raptors: 3 takeaways after ridiculous loss to Bucks.
1. The team must get Scottie Barnes involved offensively
Barnes didn’t get his first points until the fourth quarter, as he was 0-3 from the field before that game. In the fourth quarter and overtime, Barnes managed to put up 19 points while locking in on the defensive end. Where was this for most of the game?
While driving to the rim against Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez certainly isn’t easy for a player with his skillset is difficult, the fact that the Raptors completely threw him in the trash until Nurse thought the game was out of reach midway through the fourth was a puzzling move.
The Toronto Raptors must use Scottie Barnes.
Part of the reason that Barnes hasn’t made the seismic improvement many expected is the fact that Toronto keeps changing his role. One day he’s a point guard; the next day, he’s in the paint. One game, he’s the focal point of the offense, and he’ll follow that up by being sidelined for large chunks of the night.
The Raptors don’t necessarily need to let Barnes shoot 30 times a night, but any game in which he shoots fewer than 12 times per game is a failure. After Nurse acknowledged he wants to get Barnes going earlier in games, perhaps things will change soon.