Scottie Barnes likely done for season – Poeltl too?
The Toronto Raptors haven’t been bothered by injuries so far in 2023-24. However, that may be changing, and not for the better. Scottie Barnes broke a bone in the middle finger of his left hand against the Warriors, and no date has been set for his return. I’ll offer one: this fall’s training camp. There’s little purpose in rushing him back, even if it were possible (a broken bone in one’s finger can be tricky to reset, and, once healed, to regain full use of).
Then in the Raptors’ sloppy (RJ Barrett – 5 turnovers, 0 for 2 from the free throw line; this fellow has the yips something awful) 111-106 win over the injury-ravaged Charlotte Hornets, Jakob Poeltl suffered a dislocated pinky. Bruce Brown didn’t dress due to knee inflammation. Do bad things come in threes?
Coach Darko Rajakovic turned to newly-acquired Ochai Agbaji as Scottie’s replacement in the starting lineup. He played 32+ minutes of respectable ball, though shooting 1 for 7 from deep, and taking a foolish foul with seconds to play (before the ball was in play!) wasn’t pretty. We’ll give him credit for tough D and fearlessness on the boards. My guess is the starter’s job is his to lose, for at least a few more games.
Chris Boucher’s relegation to afterthought is now complete. Despite being shorthanded up front, he was a DNP-CD. Jontay Porter got some burn, and is likely to continue his audition on Tuesday versus New Orleans. If Poeltl is out, as I expect, Kelly Olynyk should start, with Porter as his backup. We also saw D.J. Carton (who?) play 12+ minutes, after signing a two-way contract. Javon Freeman-Liberty is officially on the big team’s roster, though we didn’t see him last night. Presumably with the Raptors embracing a cattle-call mentality – everybody gets a try-out! – Javon will get some serious minutes soon enough.
The end of ‘Project 6-8’ appears at hand. These last two are small guards by NBA standards, and even smaller Immanuel Quickley seems firmly affixed as the point guard of the future.
My crystal ball is foggier than usual, but I’ll venture this: with 21 games remaining, the Raptors will be hard-pressed to win 10. Final record: 31-51. Draft lottery, here we come.
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