NBA Awards Rankings: New No. 1 in Most Improved Player race
Forward. Scottie Barnes. Scottie Barnes. 2. . 81. . player. Raptors. 2
The Toronto Raptors are 5-6 with the feel of a team about to blow it up. New head coach Darko Rajaković has brought better vibes to the locker room, but he can only do so much with a flawed roster (that happens to feature several impending free agents, all potentially with one foot out the door).
Still, Toronto has put together a stingy defense and Rajakovic has completely unlocked Scottie Barnes. After winning Rookie of the Year in 2022, Barnes' sophomore season was considered a mild disappointment. His production plateaued and the Raptors went from plucky underdog contenders to a depressing, clearly unhappy play-in team.
The roster got worse over the summer, but Barnes has finally put all the pieces together. We have seen him play great defense for stretches in the past, but nothing like he's doing right now. He's averaging 1.7 steals and 1.6 blocks, wreaking havoc as a weak-side rim protector and help defender while also operating suitably as an on-ball stopper when called upon.
Offensively, Barnes has (rather shockingly) leapfrogged Pascal Siakam to become "the guy" in Toronto. He's averaging 20.9 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 5.7 assists on striking .475/.375/.761 splits. He's roping 3s at the best percentage of his career, on the highest volume of his career (5.1 per game). Barnes is suddenly a mid-range maestro, and he has fully leaned into his jumbo-sized playmaker role. He will push the tempo in transition, bully smaller defenders at the rim, and beat quality defense with better shot-making. He has fully arrived, just in time for the Raptors to center their rebuild or retool around him.