Gameday: Nets @ Raptors, October 17th

The final game of preseason action kicks off for the Toronto Raptors this season, and they will not suit up for another game until their season opener on Wednesday October 22nd against the Atlanta Hawks.

In the NBA the final preseason game is often used as a last chance for the bench players to get an abundance of live game reps, so we may not see the starters suit up tonight. In Toronto’s case though, the starters did not look great in their first minutes together in the last game against Boston so it may be important for them to get as many minutes together before the regular season begins as they can.

A prevailing topic during the preseason has been Scottie Barnes’ lackluster play and the concerns surrounding that. Barnes has not looked productive on offense, and his fit with Brandon Ingram has been rightfully questioned. All this being said, we have yet to see Barnes in a game with actual stakes this season so while the criticism is deserved for his play during preseason, it is not time to sound the alarm yet. The time to break the emergency glass would be if these issues persist well into the regular season.

There have been plenty of encouraging things during the preseason for Toronto though, such as how Ingram has looked on offense, and how their first-round draft pick Collin Murray-Boyles has been impacting the game already. Chucky Hepburn has also shown that he can potentially find his way to minutes this season as he has looked extremely stout on defense during his minutes in the preseason.

The Brooklyn Nets are in the midst of a full blown rebuild so their roster currently consists of young players, fringe players, and everything in between. They notably traded for Michael Porter Jr this off-season, a player who is famously known for being a black hole on the offensive end, which will be an interesting pairing with Cam Thomas, another shoot-first player. Overall, Brooklyn wouldn’t provide much of a test for Toronto’s starters, but if they roll with the bench unit today it could be valuable minutes for them. On paper, Toronto clearly has the better roster on both ends of the floor, it’s just a matter of who is suiting up for the Dinos tonight. Toronto has a 3-2 record thus far in the preseason and could secure a 4-2 record with a win over the Brooklyn Nets tonight. After this game the regular season begins, and with it the stakes get higher as well.