Scottie Barnes' Season in Jeopardy Following Raptors Update
Scottie Barnes' season may have come to an end.
The further testing on Barnes' fractured left hand has resulted in surgery to repair the third metacarpal bone in his left hand, the Toronto Raptors announced Monday. Barnes traveled to Los Angeles to have the surgery done by Dr. Steve Shin in Los Angeles, the team said.
Barnes remains without a definitive timeline and has yet to be ruled out for the remainder of the season, though surgery certainly suggests Barnes will be out for an extended period of time.
The injury occurred last Friday night against the Golden State Warriors when Barnes was inadvertently kicked in the hand by Immanuel Quickley as he and Barnes tried to contest a layup attempt by Jonathan Kuminga. Barnes immediately grabbed his hand and quickly checked out of the game where a fracture was later revealed.
If Barnes does not return this season, he'll finish the year having appeared in each of Toronto's first 60 games while averaging 19.9 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 6.1 assists per game while shooting 47.5% from the floor and 34.1% from three-point range. As of Monday, he leads the team in total points, rebounds, assists, blocks, and steals.
To make matters worse for the Raptors, Jakob Poeltl is battling a dislocated left pinky finger and is also undergoing further testing. He did not fracture the finger, Raptors coach Darko Rajaković said, but there was no update on when Poeltl would be able to return as of Monday.
Barnes, Poeltl, and Bruce Brown Jr. have all been ruled out for Tuesday's game against the New Orleans Pelicans.
