Trainer Details Scottie Barnes' Offensive Mindset Going Into Sophomore Season

Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes is looking to improve his offensive efficiency next summer as he works to refine his half-court attack

Aaron Rose | Aug 2, 2022

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Toronto Raptors

For all the excitement surrounding Scottie Barnes and the gaudy stats he piled up as the league's Rookie of the Year, it's the mindset of the Toronto Raptors' burgeoning star that is quite possibly the most exciting.

Barnes is a yes man.

Need him to come off the bench? Sure, the No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft started just seven of his 24 games at Florida State. Need him to do the dirty work, defend an opponent's best player, or handle the point guard spot on any given night? Yes, yes, yes.

Within Toronto's egalitarian offensive system, Barnes' attitude goes a long way.

"We're not really worried about him getting more shots, we're just worried about improving his percentages across the board," Barnes' personal trainer and childhood mentor Brian Macon told AllRaptors. "I think he can make a bigger impact just by being more efficient in his shots."

To Macon, that means getting that 73% from the free throw line a little closer to 80% next season and connecting on a few more three-pointers. It means improving Barnes' half-court offense, the primary area of focus for the two throughout their summer training together.

"He's always going to be a short roll guy. He's always going to get his points off short rolls, offensive rebounds, running a floor, those aren't going to change," Macon said. "I don't think he's worried about scoring because he's so talented that you saw last year he averaged 15 with no plays called for him. He's so talented, where good things are gonna happen because he plays hard and he's so talented on the floor. So we're not really worried about anyone else. We're just getting him just more efficient in the shots that he's already had the opportunity to take this year."

With the way Toronto's offense works, Barnes isn't going to see his shots per game skyrocket next season the way other Rookie of the Year winners have in years past. He shot 49.2% on 12.6 attempts per game last season and that latter number isn't going to jump more than a couple next season. Rather, whatever sophomore boost comes for Barnes will be courtesy of his improved efficiency and, therefore, contribute directly to Toronto's success next season.

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