3 players Jakob Poeltl has helped since joining the Raptors

Scottie Barnes

In the absence of a true big, many of the big-adjacent responsibilities on the Raptors this season have fallen to Scottie Barnes. Defensively, the sophomore forward has been asked to defend opposing bigs on the low block, and has struggled to hold his own.

It’s not his fault; he simply doesn’t have the needed size or strength. This is an unfortunate reality of the “Vision 6-9” philosophy; some guys are going to have to play out of position. Truthfully, Scottie belongs on the perimeter, where he thrives as an off-ball pest and overall chaos-bringer.

That’s why Poeltl’s presence has been such a boon for Barnes on the defensive end. The former Spur is an obvious upgrade as a post defender, having the requisite size and strength to hang with the league’s bigs. Poeltl’s presence as a rim protector also enhances the pesky defense that the Raptors want to play, allowing them to be more aggressive in passing and driving lanes.

This should benefit Barnes in particular, who thrives as an off-ball defender, roaming the perimeter and generally wreaking havoc on the opponent. Barnes does struggle to contain opposing guards at the point of attack, but this deficiency may not be quite as tangible with Poeltl there to clean up his mess at the back end.

Jakob Poeltl’s presence allows Scottie to play more aggressively.

Offensively, it has been much the same story. Scottie has been asked to fulfill many big-like responsibilities, such as setting high ball screens for the Raptors’ stars. As strong as he is, he struggles to hold the screens through contact, thus taking away any advantage the Raptors would have gained.

Poeltl is an automatic upgrade in this department, his strong lower body and thick frame creating extra space for the ballhandler to turn the corner.

Poeltl also gives the Raptors a Barnes-like floor general who can impact the game with his passing. In some ways, Poeltl is even an upgrade in this department; a more seasoned NBA player, Poeltl is more judicious with his decision-making.

His passes are carefully calculated, while Scottie’s often tend to be impulsive and overly audacious. This is not to say that Barnes isn’t a talented playmaker; he absolutely is, but sometimes making the right pass is better than making the flashy one.

Much like Barnes, Poeltl has incredible court awareness and a knack for finding his teammates in the right spot. Unlike Scottie, Poeltl has the self-discipline to look off the pass if it’s not quite there.

At this point in Barnes’ sterling career, we still can’t expect him to do it all. He’s still a young player with specific strengths and glaring weaknesses. Having Poeltl on the floor will allow Scottie to stick to his strengths on both ends of the ball.