Takeaways For Toronto As Raptors Lose Heartbreaker to Pistons

The Toronto Raptors lost on a buzzer-beater Monday night to the Detroit Pistons as Jaden Ivey's last-second shot erased a season-high performance for Scottie Barnes

Nov 25, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Jaden Ivey (23) is defended by Toronto Raptors center Jakob Poeltl (19) and guard Davion Mitchell (45) in the first half at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images / Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Detroit Pistons 102, Toronto Raptors 100

Big Time Barnes

Scottie Barnes was almost enough for Toronto.

After starting the game 0-for-3 from behind the arc, Barnes came alive in the third quarter, connecting on three straight three-pointers as the Raptors erased Detroit's early lead. They were easy three-point looks, the kind the Raptors want Barnes taking this season. First Jonathan Mogbo found him before a pair of kick-out passes from Davion Mitchell in the paint turned into catch-and-shoot opportunities for the Raptors all-star.

Barnes got into his bag of tricks from there, dribbling into a 19-footer and hitting a fallaway one-foot jumper à la Dirk Nowitzki. Neither were particularly good shots nor great decisions, but they were the kind of superstar shots Barnes is going to have to make more frequently if he's going to reach All-NBA level one day.

Detroit adjusted and Barnes slowed down after a 17-point second quarter, but the 23-year-old continued to make his impact felt in other ways. He cleaned up on the glass against Detroit with 11 rebounds and made a pair of big-time plays late in the fourth. A floater over Tobias Harris gave Toronto a late two-point lead before Barnes got inside again to find RJ Barrett with a kick-out pass for three.

A pair of missed chances from Barnes late proved costly despite a stellar season-high 31-point showing as Barnes finished three assists shy of another triple-double.

Back & Forth Chances

Nobody wanted to win this one.

Both teams squandered point-blank opportunities in the final minute Monday night. Barnes and Barrett missed shots deep inside the paint creating easy transition looks for the Pistons at the other end. Jaden Ivey missed what should have been a go-ahead layup that gave Toronto a chance to pull ahead.

But with the clock winding down, it was Ivey who did just enough, beating Ochai Agbaji off the dribble and nailing a layup as the clock expired.

2nd Chance Points

Nobody gets second chance opportunities quite like the Raptors.

Coming into Monday night, Toronto led the league in offensive rebounding rate and was averaging 13.9 offensive rebounds per game. Those offensive rebounds were leading to 17.8 second-chance points per game, again, the most in the league.

Against Detroit, the Raptors were unstoppable on the offensive glass. Toronto grabbed a season-high 23 offensive rebounds and had 25 second-chance points.

Gradey Sidelined

It sounds like Gradey Dick is going to miss some time with the calf strain he suffered Sunday night. Toronto decided to recall Ja'Kobe Walter from the G League to replace Dick and while Dick is "day-to-day" with a calf contusion, per Sportsnet's Michael Grange.

Without Dick, the Raptors found themselves with some shooting woes against Detroit. The Raptors began the game 0-for-7 from behind the arc and quickly fell behind by 15 points as the Pistons got hot early. It wasn't until Barnes got going that the Raptors clawed out of their early hole to take the lead.

Jamison Battle did his best to replace Dick as Toronto's top floor spacer, but it wasn't the same without Dick as the Raptors shot 10-for-35 from behind the arc.

No Shot Clock

Monday night's game turned into street ball early in the second quarter when the shot and game clocks both began to malfunction. Detroit's public address announcer John Mason had to call out the shot clock over the loud speaker whenever there were 10 seconds left on the clock. Fortunately the issues didn't last very long. Just 90 seconds into the second quarter, everything was up and running again.

Up Next: New Orleans Pelicans

The Raptors will have a day off before they continue their road trip Wednesday night against the New Orleans Pelicans at 8 p.m. ET