Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports
Scottie Barnes Shows Off Improving Point Guard Skills in Blowout Victory Over Spurs
Scottie Barnes stood at the right wing with the ball in one hand waiting.
From his left, he saw Christian Koloko charging down the middle of the court with a full head of steam. Barnes paused, waiting for the perfect moment to deliver the pass. When the window opened, Barnes reeled back and let it rip, firing the ball whistling past San Antonio Spurs guard Tre Jones, right into Koloko's mitts.
The Toronto Raptors rookie has every tool to be the point guard of the future for the team. He's a 6-foot-9 swiss army knife who can do virtually everything on the basketball court. There is, however, one skill he's still developing: When to lay off the fastball.
Koloko muffed the catch, bobbling it into the hands of O.G. Anunoby who corraled the loose ball and went up with it for a layup.
A learning experience, we'll call it. It's what these past two games have been for Barnes who has stepped into the void filled by Fred VanVleet's ailing back and performed spectacularly, leading Toronto to its second straight victory and a 143-100 win over the Spurs on Wednesday. Has it been perfect? No. But Barnes has shown more than enough to warrant a much longer look at the spot when VanVleet returns, likely on Friday.
Barnes opened the game by connecting with Koloko on a high alley-oop, showing off the kind of chemistry that normally takes months to develop. He rifled a skip pass to Chris Boucher in the corner for a three-pointer in the second quarter and found Boucher again driving down the lane for a layup moments later.
Otto Porter Jr. too picked up his first career Raptors points off a heater from Barnes who rifled the ball into the paint leading to a pair of free throws from the newest member of the team.
All that playmaking from Barnes who finished with 15 points and five assists came while simultaneously locking down Jones, his point guard counterpart, and keeping the Spurs' offense under wraps. San Antonio was forced into 23 turnovers leading directly to 31 Raptors' points.
Barnes, though, can't take all the credit as Toronto's new-era offensive facilitator. Pascal Siakam once again stepped up as a point forward for the Raptors, doing a little bit of everything to keep the offense ticking without VanVleet. He did his best Kawhi Leonard impression in the first quarter, twice rising up from the left side to nail a pair of tough mid-range jumpers. Then in the third quarter, he showed off his toughness near the hoop, collecting a pass from Barnes for an and-one layup, part of a 40-point frame that allowed Toronto to blow the game wide open.
Siakam needed less than 28 minutes to record his second triple-double of the season, finishing the night with 22 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds.
Chris Boucher Leads Bench Unit
Chris Boucher won't earn Sixth Man of the Year recognition this year because of his unusual play, but his play to start this season should certainly have him in the conversation. He's been near-flawless to start the year, coming off the bench with a game-changing energy night after night.
Against San Antonio, he connected on a trio of three-pointers, leading the bench with 17 points on 7-for-10 shooting with eight rebounds.
Up Next: Dallas Mavericks
The Raptors will continue their Texas two-step Friday night when they take on Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks at 8:30 pm ET.
