3 Players who must get axed from the Raptors’ playoff rotation

1. Will Barton

The Raptors may not have expected Barton to come right in and fix all of their shooting issues, but the fact that Barton has already shown that his efficiency is nothing like what it was during his peak with the Nuggets. How much longer will Barton get before Nurse decides to finally pull the plug?

Barton scored just nine points in a five-game stretch, making just four of his 23 shots and one of his 12 3-pointers. Even though he started off hot against Detroit on Friday night, many of the defensive lapses and wild shots that have started to become his trademarks in Toronto popped up once again. It’s clear why he was available.

Will Barton must step up for the Toronto Raptors.

The Raptors may not have a choice but to play Barton in the postseason due to a lack of available options off the bench, but playing someone that has clearly shown he is incapable of handling even a medium-volume role to this point is a good way to get sent home early. Barton is running out of time to prove himself.

Not even a year ago, Barton was playing vital minutes and hitting big shots on a Nuggets team that gave the Warriors a solid punch in the postseason. That player is still very much in there, but both player and team need to do more in order to draw that out of him. If they don’t, he can expect to ride the pine.