Toronto Raptors Scottie Barnes (4) gets by Boston Celtics Jayson Tatum during second half NBA pre-season basketball action in Montreal on Oct. 14, 2022.Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press
Last season, Scottie Barnes openly talked about his desire to be the NBA’s rookie of the year. After earning that award, he enters Year Two unafraid to mention his next big goal.
As the Toronto Raptors tip off their new campaign Wednesday night by playing host to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Barnes begins his sophomore season chasing a fresh objective: making an all-defensive team.
“I feel like that’s what I really do best – when I’m locked in on the defensive end, everything else is coming easier and more naturally to me,” Barnes said after Tuesday’s practice. “So when you see me really locked in on the defensive end, everything goes really well for me. So that’s one thing that I always pride myself on: trying to guard. So I feel like that’s my goal.”
At just 21 years old, the Raptors’ fourth overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft averaged 15.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists last season, plus he established himself as an unswerving defender. Add that to his ability to play all positions at 6 foot 7, his animated personality and entertaining social-media presence, and Barnes is arguably Toronto’s most interesting player to watch this season.
“I think you’re probably looking at somebody who’s heading towards multiple all-stars, and I would think he’s kind of got a little superstar element to him already,” Raptors head coach Nick Nurse said. “He did all he could do last year, he played a ton of minutes, he kept getting better and tougher. And now he’s just got to kind of run it back.”
The Raptors enter the 2022-23 season with a largely familiar roster and hoping that’s enough to contend in an even deeper Eastern Conference. Barnes is likely to feature alongside the usual starters: OG Anunoby, Gary Trent Jr., plus established all-stars Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet.
In rebuild mode last season, they finished with a 48-34 record, good for third in the Atlantic Division, fifth in Eastern Conference, and lost their first-round playoff series to the Philadelphia 76ers. Barnes’s ankle injury in Game 1 of that series sidelined him for the next two games, and was a huge blow to the team. That left fans hungry to see what’s possible from Barnes during a more fulsome postseason.
After the Raptors lost, the NBA called on Barnes to be a social-media correspondent during last year’s NBA Finals. Barnes spent two days in Boston filming videos and taking photos for the league, where the rookie of the year looked at ease interviewing everyone from Steph Curry to Jayson Tatum.
Over the summer, a video clip of Barnes defending James Harden during a scrimmage in Los Angeles went viral. Even in an off-season pickup game, there was the uber-energetic Barnes, picking up the one-time NBA MVP and three-time scoring champion beyond half court, then using fast feet to keep abreast of the quick-dribbling Harden. Barnes clapped confidently at the 10-time all-star. Basketball enthusiasts across the internet were rapt by the moxy and effort Barnes showed, saying Toronto’s undaunted youngster has ‘it.’
Raptors coach Nurse impressed with sophomore Scottie Barnes four days into camp
His teammates are excited to see his next level too.
“Scottie is an amazing basketball player and I don’t even think he knows it,” Raptors veteran Thaddeus Young said. “He’s so young, and he’s just scratching the surface.”
Wednesday’s opener will see Barnes take on a friend – and rival – who finished a close second to him in rookie-of-the-year voting: Cleveland’s Evan Mobley, the No. 3 overall pick in 2021. The two have known each other since playing together for Team USA’s under-15 team and roomed together, a time when Barnes says he tried to draw out the then-shy Mobley.
“It’s all friendship with us,” Barnes said. “We both congratulate each other’s successes.”
Barnes was just the third player in franchise history to earn the ROY honour, joining Vince Carter (1998-99) and Damon Stoudamire (1995-96).
He seemed stumped when reporters asked whether he feels more comfortable in any way entering his second season than he did his first. His lengthy pause made one wonder if there was ever a time when Barnes didn’t feel completely at home in the NBA.
“I’d say I feel the same – a bunch of excitement,” Barnes said. “I’m just ready to get out there on the floor, be able to try and run with these guys each and every single day. We’re sacrificing in the gym every day. We’re ready to show it on the court.”