Raptors Clinch Perfect Preseason With Improved Scottie Barnes Leading the Way

The Toronto Raptors topped the Washington Wizards to clinch the franchise's first undefeated preseason with Scottie Barnes leading the way

In hindsight, Scottie Barnes’ preseason last year should have been more alarming.

It was clear something was off with Barnes right from the jump. The Toronto Raptors blamed it on needing to play catchup after he missed three weeks with an ankle injury, but clearly there was something more. He looked off in the preseason and a disappointing start to the year carried over into a lackluster sophomore season.

This year, though, has been totally different.

As anyone will tell you, it’s hard to read much into preseason games but Barnes has without a doubt looked improved. There’s a confidence and an aggressiveness emanating from him. What it means won’t be clear until the season actually tips off next week, but a hot start from both him and the Raptors, who clinched their first perfect preseason with a 134-98 victory over the Washington Wizards, is certainly better than the alternative.

If Friday’s game was any indication of what’s to come this season, Barnes appears more willing to take — and make — threes. He let it fly from deep on Toronto’s very first possession and took five threes, connecting on three of them, in the first 17 minutes against Washington.

"Now if you’re closing out on Scottie Barnes like, God help you, you’re dealing with him going downhill and finishing at the rim or connecting with his teammates," Rajaković said. "And that's gonna really help his game and it's gonna really help our game. And I want Scottie to shoot."

But it wasn’t just the outside shooting that looked different from Barnes. He was aggressive, particularly early, a trait he struggled with last season. He worked a pick-and-roll with Dennis Schröder, rolling hard to the rim for an easy two. He later went right at Daniel Gafford, bodying up the 6-foot-10 Wizards center for a layup.

Transition buckets and put-backs continue to be what Barnes is best at. The Raptors put the Wizards away in the second half with a pair of transition dunks from the third-year forward whose speed and power up the court proved too much for Washington. He used that strength of his twice scooping up rebounds and muscling in second-chance layups.

"Scottie is a unicorn," Rajaković added. "He can play one through five, any position. He’s good handling the ball, he’s good setting screens in pick and roll, we're finding more opportunities for him as well. I think he’s had a great pre-season here, he did amazing job during the summer, his shooting is coming along, he’s feeling more comfortable."

Barnes’ lone real hiccups of the night came courtesy of a pair of missed free throws and an errant no-look pass he tried to thread to Otto Porter Jr. Otherwise, he was stellar, finishing the night with 23 points on 10-for-14 shooting with a trio of three-pointers. His night did, however, come to an end late in the third when he appeared to roll his right ankle. The team ruled him out with a right foot sprain, though Rajaković said post-game that Barnes is "fine."

If Barnes’ progress was the biggest story of the preseason, Pascal Siakam’s grasp of Toronto’s new system can’t be far behind. The Raptors made it clear they’re not ready to ink Siakam to a long-term deal until they’re sure he fits in this new system. Early returns suggest he’s going to be just fine.

Siakam followed up a 22-point performance against the Bulls with a 19-point showing with eight rebounds and three assists against Washington. It wasn’t the most efficient outing, but his presence as Toronto’s offensive facilitator was clear. The Wizards packed the paint and collapsed around him repeatedly, allowing him to create advantages for others, including a speedy layup from Schröder who made use of that extra space in the second.

In terms of the rotation, the Raptors said they wanted to make their final preseason game a dress rehearsal for the regular season and, generally speaking, it appeared that way. Save for Gary Trent Jr. who was sidelined for “rest,” Toronto used 11 players with Achiuwa the first off the bench. Gradey Dick and Jalen McDaniels came in next, followed by Malachi Flynn and Chris Boucher who entered surprisingly late in the first quarter. The last of the early group was Porter who made his preseason debut to start the second quarter.

Dick connected on four of his five threes, the second of which stuck Toronto to a 101-72 lead late in the third quarter thanks to a 43-point quarter. He nearly had a beautiful assist, driving to the hoop for a layup before pivoting mid-air for a kick-out pass to the corner where McDaniels awaited. McDaniels just couldn’t finish the play.

"Yeah, he was good until he got tired," Rajaković said of Dick. "When he got tired, he started leaning like on shots and I told him in a game, you’ve just got to still focus on doing small things on both ends of the floor."

Malachi Flynn ended any doubt that he’ll be Toronto’s backup point guard for at least the start of the year. Jeff Dowtin Jr. once again failed to appear in meaningful minutes for the Raptors while Flynn bounced back from a disappointing showing to drop 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting.

As for what the perfect preseason record means?

"Nothing. Nothing at all," Rajaković said. "What matters is our preparation for the regular season for when it’s going to start.

"The regular season starts now, our main thing starts now."

Up Next: Minnesota Timberwolves

The Raptors will have a few days off before the regular season tips off on Wednesday when the Minnesota Timberwolves come to town for a 7:30 p.m. ET tipoff at Scotiabank Arena.