Raptors' Nick Nurse Expresses Doubt in Scottie Barnes' Status for Game 4

As the Philadelphia 76ers and the Toronto Raptors battled it out for Game 1 in the first round of the 2022 NBA Playoffs, Rookie of the Year finalist Scottie Barnes went down with an injury. As the young center twisted his ankle after getting his foot stepped on, Barnes went down and needed medical attention from his team's training staff.

After getting checked out, Barnes was helped up off the floor and slowly walked back to the visitor's locker room with the help of his teammates. The rookie center immediately got an X-ray on his ankle, which came back negative.

The following morning, Barnes underwent an MRI to get further tests done on his ankle. Once again, it seemed all came back clear as Barnes didn't suffer any broken bones. However, he's still dealing with a sprained ankle, which put him in a walking boot.

Before Game 2 on Monday in South Philly, Barnes was ruled out as early as Monday morning. At the time, he wouldn't rule out a possible return at some point in the series. Going into Game 3, the Raptors listed Barnes as doubtful.

As expected, the rookie didn't get the nod to play despite shaking the walking boot ahead of the team's Wednesday morning shootaround session.

Before Game 3, Raptors head coach Nick Nurse expressed belief in Barnes returning sometime soon. After the matchup, he reiterated that much, leaving the Sixers guessing whether Toronto would get a key player back soon or not.

But a couple of days after showing confidence in a potential Barnes return soon, Nurse expressed doubt regarding Barnes' Game 4 status in Toronto.

"Still doubtful" -- Nurse on Barnes availability for Game 4.
— Michael Grange (@michaelgrange) April 22, 2022

According to the Raptors' injury report, Scottie Barnes is listed as doubtful for the third-straight game.

While the Raptors could certainly use their Rookie of the Year candidate as they look to avoid a sweep on Saturday, it seems Toronto is on pace to be shorthanded once again as Barnes' status is in doubt.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.