With the first Toronto Raptors game of the season arriving on Sunday in Montreal (at least of the exhibition variety), it’s time for some burning questions about the team.
Here’s what we are wondering as the team’s rebuild kicks into high gear following a rough 2023-24 that was marred by injuries, personal losses and those of the on-court variety.
1. CAN SCOTTIE BARNES ADVANCE ANOTHER LEVEL?
Barnes is the face of the franchise now.
He was an absolute monster for the 33 games he played before the calendar turned to 2024 and he basically played at an all-NBA second-team level (third team at worst), averaging 21 points, 9.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists and just shy of three combined blocks and rebounds a game. He also shot 48% from the field and 38.5% on three-point attempts.
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That player looks like the top guy on a contender. It’s the guy the Raptors franchise think Barnes can be.
He just turned 23, so Barnes is not yet at his peak. But he struggled post-Jan. 1, shooting 26.3% from three, rebounding a lot less and generally looking less assertive.
He needs to figure out what went wrong, make sure it doesn’t happen again and get back to the Barnes that took the NBA by storm to start the season.
2. WHAT IS THE STARTING LINEUP?
There are four locks: Barnes, Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett and Jakob Poeltl.
Gradey Dick seems like a good bet to claim the final spot. It was likely trending that way even before injuries to veteran Bruce Brown and rookie Ja’Kobe Walter, but with Dick bulked up and is feeling confident coming off a strong finish and good summer. His shooting seems like the best fit with the group.
That five-some only spent four total minutes together last season and Dick barely played in any combination with Poeltl and only a tiny bit more with Barnes.
They’ll need to get familiarized, but on paper look like a solid two-way starting five.
The pencilled-in foursome started 10 times together, going 4-6 (with Gary Trent Jr. at shooting guard instead of Dick).
Toronto had 30 different starting lineups in 2024-25, one of the highest totals in the league.
3. WHICH ROOKIES WILL PLAY THE MOST?
Jonathan Mogbo, most likely.
Given Toronto’s lack of depth up front, Mogbo — who has a bright future, but is still early in the development process — could earn Darko Rajakovic’s trust because of his high basketball IQ, especially defensively.
At that end, they might see if Mogbo can emulate some of what Barnes does as a bit of a sweeper, hanging back and taking care of mistakes.
Jamal Shead, the NCAA defensive player of the year, will be working to crack the rotation and the senior is the most NBA-ready of the rookies, though his shot needs a lot of work.
Walter, Toronto’s highest pick, is hurt to start training camp, is also rail thin and coming off just one year of college basketball. He won’t be rushed and should be more of a factor in a few months.
Ulrich Chomche, the youngest player in the draft, is extremely intriguing but as raw as it gets, so buy tickets and plan to be in Mississauga if you want to see him.
4. IS THIS THE REAL RJ BARRETT?
Barrett was considered the best prospect in his draft class until teammate Zion Williamson and upstart guard Ja Morant eclipsed him. Still, he was good enough to go third overall and had plenty of promising months as a member of the New York Knicks before being dealt to the Raptors in last season’s blockbuster.
Barrett had also been mediocre at times while in New York, shooting 40% from the field in two of his first three seasons there and a career-low 31% from three in his final full Knicks season, before improving a bit prior to the trade.
But the Barrett who showed up in Toronto played at an all-star level and by far, the best of his career. Barrett led the Raptors in scoring, shot 55% from the field (vs. 42% in 297 games with the Knicks) and had an effective field goal percentage of .601 (vs. .476).
Rajakovic asked Barrett to create as well as score and the result was by far the best assist percentage he has shown. Barrett also rebounded better and got to the free-throw line at will (the only negative was terrible shooting on his free throws, Barrett actually shot a better percentage on shots at the rim than from the free-throw line as a Raptor, which almost never happens).
The Raptors were hoping Barrett would improve slightly. What they got was a really good starter. How will things go with a bigger sample size?
5. ARE ANY TRADES LIKELY?
Brown and Chris Boucher are on expiring contracts, Poeltl has a year on his deal beyond this one plus a player option on 2026-27. Only Garrett Temple and Kelly Olynyk are older than that trio.
Brown will be moved as soon as Toronto receives a viable offer for him. They wanted a first-round selection for Brown last year, but couldn’t find a deal.
Boucher is a good reserve with the energy any team could use, but didn’t find a fit with Rajakovic. He should have some value.
Poeltl is the wild card. Toronto’s best chance to contend for years to come is to complement Barnes with another player with all-NBA upside. The draft is the only way to do that, barring another Kawhi Leonard-type trade popping up out of nowhere.
With Poeltl, Toronto should be able to be passable defensively. Without him, well, they’d likely be in big trouble. By the time the team is a contender again Poeltl will be out of his prime.
Those are dilemmas for Toronto and why it’s not impossible that Poeltl gets moved in February, despite his obvious value to the team.