Samson Folk & Louis Zatzman preview Scottie Barnes’ season.
“So, what has Barnes clearly established as strengths in his game? He is unquestionably a very strong defender, and he maintained his energy and tenacity in a lost season where he was tasked with a lot of on-ball responsibilities on offense. He is an elite rebounder, providing extra possessions on the offensive glass and closing out possessions on the other side (73rd & 94th percentile). He’s a talented at rim finisher, especially when he’s able to attack off the catch rather than his own dribble. And lastly, but not least, he is one of the best passing forwards in the world. He’s exceptionally quick at reading the floor in front of him, and he uses his huge frame to make a wide array of passes.
There’s a great bedrock of skills here. On top of that bedrock, Barnes has had pockets, stretches, streaks… of pseudo stardom on offense. Whether it’s productive runs of pick n’ roll play where his ability to spray passes everywhere supplies the Raptors with gobs of points; or where bully drives against mismatches are a breaking point for teams who can’t matchup against jumbo wings; or maybe, a small — very small — stretch of strong 3-point shooting – these things have shown up before.
Now, is it likely that everything listed above (both paragraphs) happens consistently over the course of this season? Probably not. I think that would put him in an almost undeniable spot for an All-NBA selection. I do think it’s likely that we see the Raptors attempt to funnel him back towards his strong bedrock a bit, while also expecting him to maintain a decent amount of the responsibilities he’s slowly accumulated on offense throughout the years – and on top of all that, you hope for a 3-point shooting season that wouldn’t qualify as his career worst. Depending on the Raptors first half, this could land Barnes back in the All-Star game.”
Have a blessed day.
