RJ Barrett sustained a right knee injury during the Raptors versus Nets game on November 23, and initial reports indicated he would miss at least a week pending re-evaluation. Thankfully for fans, an official Toronto Raptors press release would highlight that medical imaging revealed "no structural damage" to his right knee, and instead, it was diagnosed as a sprain. A sprain sounds easier on the ears than torn or broken, but it remains a costly injury for Barrett to fully recover from.
In the immediate aftermath, I highlighted that this stretch opens the door for others in the Raptors' pecking order to step up in his absence, notably Gradey Dick, Ja'Kobe Walter, and most prominently Ochai Agbaji — who hasn't quite lived up to the golden opportunity, to say the least.
Raptors Nation received positive news about RJ Barrett's recovery as it was revealed the 25-year-old Canadian star received a platelet-rich plasma injection, but fans should brace for more time missed as his absence is expected to extend beyond the nine games already missed. Nevertheless, losing RJ Barrett, who has emerged as a core piece to their 2025-26 success, has undoubtedly been an absolute gut punch for the Raptors. While it's not the only reason Toronto hasn't seen favorable results in December, it remains a significant contributing factor.
Raptors falling off in several statistical categories minus RJ Barrett
The Raptors are 3-6 without Barrett in the lineup, only able to put up 105.9 points per game in this sample. This is in contrast to a strong 121.0 points per game when Barrett is active. In line with these offensive challenges, Toronto's field goal percentage has dropped to 45.1 percent during this stretch, compared to 50.3 percent when he's on the court. The Raptors also attempt fewer free throws without Barrett, averaging only 19.2 attempts per game versus 26.2 with him in the lineup. Additionally, their assist numbers suffer without him, dropping from 30.4 assists per game with Barrett to 27.6 without.
No one can deny the significant boost that RJ Barrett provides to this Raptors team. Despite concerns about his defense or whether he can be a consistent winning player, it’s clear that without him, the Raptors are taking a heavy hit. While I wouldn’t say Barrett is the lone factor in the team’s success, it’s obvious now that he is a crucial part of Toronto’s winning formula.
Before he went down, he was providing the Raptors with 19.4 points (third-highest on the team) on 60.4 percent true shooting, along with 4.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists, close to a steal (0.8) per game. Barrett is a strong scorer inside and has also been capable of knocking down three-pointers at a solid rate (35.6 percent this season). Without him, Toronto has lost a sense of their ability to attack the basket and misses a key contributor to the team's smooth ball movement.
Although Toronto could hypothetically replace Barrett’s impact with another talented player or a few, the times when Barrett hasn’t been on the court have made his importance and influence stand out even more than some might have initially thought.