The Raptors find themselves back in Boston for a pre-season game on Sunday as the exhibition drudgery continues with a date against the reigning NBA champions before Toronto plays host to the Celtics Tuesday night.
Boston remains the measuring stick, a team many project to repeat as NBA champions, while the Raptors remain a team that will be hard-pressed to even make the play-in tournament.
The game Sunday is apt to evoke memories of a Dec. 29 visit to TD Garden, when the home side staved off the pesky visitors in a thrilling 120-118 win.
It was a night when Scottie Barnes went 7-for-15 from distance, a career high.
Despite his unique combination of size, skill and defensive versatility, Barnes has never been known for his stroke from beyond the arc.
In the next 29 games before a hand injury sidelined Barnes for the season, only once did he make as many as four three-pointers.
(The date in Boston also will be known as the final time the early version of last season’s Raptors would play as a unit. As soon as the team arrived in Detroit the following day, word began to spread of a multi-player trade with the New York Knicks. The key asset moving to Gotham was OG Anunoby. The key pieces acquired by the Raptors were Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett.)
So much of the Raptors’ success will be based on Barnes and how well he’s able to expand his game.
In short, it’s all about his perimeter shooting.
That one night in Boston provided a glimpse into the potential Barnes could unleash when he’s draining triples.
That night in Boston also featured a starting unit that included Anunoby, Pascal Siakam, Jakob Poeltl and Gary Trent Jr.
Only the affable Austrian remains Barnes’ teammate, at least for now because it’s anyone’s guess how long Poeltl is a member of the Raptors given the franchise’s focus on building around its young core.
For what it’s worth, Poeltl looked good on Friday during the Raptors’ loss to the Wizards in Washington as did Chris Boucher, another veteran whose time in Toronto is being questioned.
Boucher is in his contract year, but he was the first player off Toronto’s bench against the Wizards and led the team in scoring by going 7-for-10, including 3-for-4 from distance.
The rest of Toronto’s nine reserves went a combined 9-for-46.
Whatever success the Raptors are able to reach will be based on their ability to shoot the basketball and protect the rock.
Friday night, they had more turnovers (22) than assists (20), were horrific from distance and allowed Washington to score almost half of its baskets from three-point range.
Granted, it was Barnes’ first live action since his injury last March 1.
He was quite aggressive to begin the game, assertive to begin the second half, but Barnes was too turnover-prone, while picking up some sloppy fouls.
More importantly, he missed all five of his heaves from distance.
At least he was on the floor playing against an actual opponent, which is never a bad thing.
The players around him were, for the most part, not good and concerns about Toronto’s depth were only magnified, as if no one already knew the talent disparity.
Barrett is out for the balance of the pre-season, which wraps up next Friday night in Brooklyn, while Quickley is ramping up his preparation.
Kelly Olynyk didn’t dress in Washington, while Bruce Brown continues to rehab from his off-season knee surgery.
When competent players are on the court with Barnes and when shots are dropping, the floor gets spread, which frees up Barnes to either attack the basket or step into three-pointers when spotting up.
Until Quickley, Barrett and to some degree Olynyk are each available, any definitive conclusions on Barnes will be hard to make.
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When the Raptors had no legitimate point guard during stretches late last season, Olynyk served as the defacto floor general.
His size allows Olynyk to see over defenders, his IQ means the right play usually gets made and his feel for the game normally results in a good look created.
But there are limitations and they were exposed the more Olynyk had the ball in his hands, which is not his fault because he should not have been in that position to begin with, but necessity called for it.
Whether it was Barnes’ inability to make a three-point shot Friday, the other takeaway from Toronto’s 113-95 loss was how bad this Raptors season has the potential to be if injury strikes any of the team’s core group.
This team can’t shoot and most of the players coming off the bench can barely play at this level.
No one can question their compete level, but there’s too much youth and so very little talent.
Washington was plus-30 in three-point shooting, which only underscores Toronto’s porous perimeter defence.
Encouraging signs, at least for those keen on pumping the team’s tires, did emerge.
Gradey Dick made his first three-pointer of the pre-season, but he also committed four fouls.
Davion Mitchell’s game-high six assists did stick out, and perhaps a backup point guard is being developed.
Jamal Shead’s defensive intensity must once again be commended, but he can’t shoot and missed his first seven attempts from the field.
The need for health among Toronto’s primary weapons was clearly pronounced, as was the need for Barnes to become a better three-point shooter.
He showed he can during the Raptors’ visit to Boston last year.
It will be up to Barnes to prove he can do it more than just one night.
Finding a form from distance will only make Barnes that much more formidable, and by extension make the Raptors much more relevant.