Raptors’ Plans Derailed as Scottie Barnes’ $45M Dream Slips Away

Injuries to key players have derailed the Toronto Raptors' season, while Scottie Barnes' $45M supermax dream slips further out of reach

Dec 7, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes (4) reacts after scoring a three point basket against the Dallas Mavericks during the fourth quarter at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images / Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

This season was supposed to be about getting answers.

The Toronto Raptors weren’t so much focused on wins and losses as they were on figuring out their future. The results on the court mattered less than the opportunity to evaluate their core. What does a Scottie Barnes-led team look like? Can Barnes and RJ Barrett co-exist? How do Barnes and Immanuel Quickley fit together? The trio shared 436 minutes on the floor last season, and the goal for this year was to see if that limited sample could grow into something more meaningful.

So much for that.

Twenty-five games into the season, and the Raptors have yet to see Barnes, Barrett, and Quickley play a single minute together. Injuries have wrecked the entire plan. Immanuel Quickley has been sidelined since November 10 with a UCL sprain in his left elbow and isn’t expected back for at least a couple more weeks. When he does return, it’ll likely be without Barnes, who suffered a right ankle sprain and is now expected to miss multiple weeks.

“It would be awesome,” Raptors coach Darko Rajaković said when asked about the possibility of finally seeing his team at full strength. “We have not had our core guys and main guys in their roles pretty much all season. And what it does at the same time, it's not allowing us to look (at) what our bench would look like when we have those guys in their roles. Makes it hard.”

Hard is one way to put it.

Toronto went 2-9 earlier this season without Barnes, and the path ahead isn’t any easier. Of their next 20 games, 18 come against teams currently holding playoff spots. The only matchups that could be considered winnable — home against Chicago and on the road against Detroit — still won’t be easy. If Barnes and Quickley are both out, the Raptors figure to be underdogs in both contests.

Even with Quickley progressing toward a return, Rajaković faces the difficult task of managing rotations that have been in flux since opening night. Barrett has been asked to carry more of the offensive load, while role players like Ochai Agbaji, Jonathan Mogbo, and Davion Mitchell have been thrust into larger roles. Without Barnes or Quickley, the Raptors' depth has been forced to play beyond their means, and Rajaković has had to experiment with lineups in ways that don’t offer much clarity about the future.

The timing of Barnes’ injury couldn’t have been worse for him personally, either. He entered the season with an outside chance to make his first All-NBA team, which would have made him eligible for a supermax contract extension. But under the NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement, players must appear in at least 65 games to qualify for All-NBA honors. Barnes has already missed 11 games this season due to an orbital fracture, and he can only miss seven more games without losing eligibility for league honors. With this current injury, it’s likely that he’ll miss that threshold, ending his shot at the supermax and costing him a potential $45 million payday.

For the Raptors, this season was supposed to be about clarity. They wanted to know what they had in Barnes, Barrett, and Quickley as a trio. It was supposed to be about defining roles and shaping the future. Instead, they’re stuck waiting.

Waiting for Barnes to heal.

Waiting for Quickley to return.

Waiting to see if their long-term plan even makes sense.

At this point, all they’ve learned is that sometimes, even the best-laid plans can get swept away by injuries.