The Toronto Raptors were considered the favorites to beat an Indiana Pacers team that was playing without star point guard Tyrese Haliburton, but injuries of their known sidelining Gary Trent Jr. and Scottie Barnes made things a bit more complicated. An already thin bench was stretched thin without these players.
Trent was replaced in the rotation by Will Barton, a shooter who is not shooting well since joining Toronto and is a net negative on the defensive side of the ball. Chris Boucher was promoted to the featured Sixth Man off the bench, while Jeff Dowtin Jr. was brought up from the ranks of the G League in order to bolster the second unit.
The Pacers started fast and closed strong, taking home a 118-114 victory that brings them to just two games behind the Raptors in the race for the final play-in spot. Brilliant performances from Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet were wasted due to bad perimeter defense, foul shooting, and poorly timed turnovers.
The Raptors are going to face tons of competition when they try to persuade Trent to stick around long-term in Toronto. Trent’s price may have just gone up, as this game underscored just how important a player of his caliber with his skillset can be on this unusually constructed Raptors team.
Gary Trent Jr. (elbow) ruled out Wednesday.
— Underdog NBA (@Underdog__NBA) March 22, 2023
Raptors show value of Gary Trent Jr. in loss vs. Pacers
Barton has performed so poorly that Malachi Flynn has been reinserted into the rotation to make up for his substandard play. Not only has Barton reinforced the need for more young talent on the bench, but he has essentially killed any chance of him potentially returning to the team after the end of this season.
Not only does Trent bring shooting, but he also has an offensive creation skill and creativity that can’t be replicated without him. Even if someone comes into the league as a first-round pick, the odds of the Raptors getting someone who can be as lethal a 3-point shooter and ball-handler right out of the box are infinitesimal.
Defensively, the Pacers were getting wide-open looks while barely breaking a sweat. Trent could help put a stop to that thanks to his pesty turnover creation skills. The bench looked completely out of whack near the end of the first quarter.
We're 23 minutes in and Will Barton and Chris Boucher are among the 5 (!!) Raptors players who have attempted more shots than Pascal Siakam. That can't happen, especially with 3 rotation players out and the team playing this poorly on both ends. Need more from their best player.
— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) March 23, 2023
The Raptors are not going to do anything in the postseason unless Trent comes right out and shows that he can make up for some of the construction flaws that the front office made in the offseason. Trent and his agents should send clips from this game to all 30 NBA front offices when it comes time to ask for a nine-figure contract in the offseason.