Raptors Coach Evokes a Revered Name as a Comparison for RJ Barrett

Toronto Raptors coach Darko Rajaković evoked Manu Ginóbili's name while discussing RJ Barrett's playmaking on Thursday night

Mikal Bridges was hopeless.

He knew it.

To be fair, there wasn’t much the Brooklyn Nets forward could have done as RJ Barrett, Scottie Barnes, and Immanuel Quickley came sprinting down the court on a 3-on-2 opportunity for the Toronto Raptors. But still, Barrett had the Nets’ All-Defense wing caught in a trap. He picked up his dribble just inside the three-point line, looked toward Barnes in the middle of the court, and then fired a left-handed dart to Quickley in the opposite corner.

Bridges paused for a split second to wall off what he thought would be a pass to Barnes and by then it was too late. Quickley caught the pin-point pass in the corner and let it fly.

Bucket.

A quarter later, Barrett got into his bag of tricks again, working a pick-and-roll to his right, pausing Dennis Schröder with a stutter step, then swapping the ball to his left hand before weaving a dump-off pass between two Nets defenders.

For Raptors coach Darko Rajaković, Barrett’s seven-assist performance brought back memories of one of the league’s most revered left-handed playmakers.

Manu Ginóbili.

“We had a conversation, couple weeks ago, I told him I see some of that type of play in him,” Rajaković said of Barrett. “That he can actually attack, that he sees the floor really well. And then that's what we need for him to do.”

Ginóbili is the embodiment of how Rajaković wants the Raptors to play. He was a do-it-all guard who made quick decisions, could nail three-pointers with ease, get into the paint, and had the playmaking chops to keep defenders off balance with his passing prowess.

“Of course, it’s a big compliment, one of the greatest,” Barrett said.

Toronto is hoping there’s a little more Ginóbili in Barrett’s game too. While the Canadian forward is terrific at scoring off the drive, his playmaking for others is still a work in progress.

The plan for Rajaković and Barrett is to get in the film room later this season and spend some time watching Ginóbili highlights. By the sounds of it, that’ll be as much a learning experience as a fun activity for Rajaković whose affection for Ginóbili is apparent in the way he speaks about the former San Antonio Spurs legend.

Barrett sees that too.

“How smart he was, making reads, making the right reads, the right plays, always solid and steady every single game,” Barrett said of Ginóbili.

For Barrett, becoming more Ginóbili-esque is going to take a tweaking of his mindset. He tallied just 12 points Thursday night in what he considered to be a disappointing showing. It’s why he was so surprised when reporters wanted to speak to him in the locker room post-game.

But the way Barrett impacted the game without his scoring was remarkable too. Toronto won Barrett’s minutes by 29 points against the Nets thanks in part to Barrett’s playmaking skills.

“To be honest with you, I expect that from him every single night,” Rajaković said.