The Raptors lost a 121-115 game to the Denver Nuggets, but the game didn’t kill all of the momentum they had built with three straight wins against the Suns, Pistons, and Bulls. There were still positive takeaways and plenty to make fans look forward to the next game and a chance for the Raptors to get another win.
One silver lining was Nuggets coach David Adelman’s praise for Scottie Barnes’s playmaking—he finished the game with eight assists—and for the Raptors’ defense. Adelman told reporters postgame that the Raptors’ defense, backed by Barnes and Jakob Poeltl, gave the Nuggets trouble.
“Those are the small moments I’m looking for; attacking things that we’ve seen throughout the year that have given us issues,” Adelman said, “especially from a team like this that has a built-in cross-match team with Barnes being a guy that can guard everybody and Poeltl being a high, high IQ center that just kind of roams around.”
Barnes spent a lot of time guarding Nikola Jokic, which forced the Nuggets star to go up against an athletic forward rather than a more traditional center. Barnes also frequently switched onto Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon, showing off his versatility. Having a player who can guard a team’s three leading scorers, who all play very different positions and styles of basketball, is an invaluable asset. It is also why Barnes should have an All-Defensive Team on his resume soon.
The Raptors’ defense is very versatile
The Raptors have a lot of size and length on the roster. Out of their top nine players in minutes per game, four—Barnes, Brandon Ingram, Poeltl, and Sandro Mamukelashvili—are at least 6’8”. RJ Barrett, Collin Murray-Boyles, and Ja’Kobe Walter are all between 6’4” and 6’7”. Immanuel Quickley and Jamal Shead are the only players in that top nine who are shorter than 6’4”.
That size paired with Barnes’s defensive versatility means that the Raptors can switch a lot and throw many different looks at opponents. Sometimes, surprising your opponent with unorthodox matchups or defensive schemes is just enough to throw them off and build a lead.
While Adelman commended the Raptors’ ability to cross-match and throw out unique looks defensively, it didn’t translate to a win this time. Nevertheless, everything Adelman praised is a great foundation for the Raptors to work with. After all, this is just the first season that Barnes, Quickley, Barrett, and Ingram are playing together.