How RJ Barrett AVOIDS Getting Traded…

How RJ Barrett AVOIDS Getting Traded…

Much has been made about how expensive the Toronto Raptors are, and the natural progression with that line of thinking is trades. RJ Barrett has been at the forefront of the rumor mill for the Raptors over the last few months, and for a few different reasons. Barrett is extension eligible in October. The Raptors are above the luxury tax, needing to shed salary eventually. And while the trio of Barrett, Scotty Barnes, and Brandon Ingram has its merits, there are some eventual hurdles they’ll have to come across to make it work on the court. But the Raptors don’t need to trade R.J. in fact, they shouldn’t be rushing at all. Fans have jumped the gun a bit on how Barrett fits into everything the Raptors want to build. And there’s a version of his game that could potentially thrive in this context. Before we get into the rest of the video, please like, comment, and subscribe, and make sure Raptors Republic gets out to more viewers. We appreciate you guys supporting as always. Now, back to R.J. over his first 90 games in his hometown, Barrett has played the best basketball of his career. He’s put up career highs across the board in points, rebounds, assists, field goal percentage, and two-point percentage. He won his minutes for the first time in his career in Toronto, plus 9.3 onoff differential in nearly 3,000 minutes. And he also was a part of some of the most successful defensive lineups for the Raptors last season. In an injury-riddled season for the team, Barrett was given ample opportunity with the ball in his hands and blossomed as a pick and roll initiator, generating 1.028 028 points per pick run, including passes in over 500 possessions, ranking in the 72nd percentile. Those numbers are comparable to Malik Monk, Devin Booker, and De’aran Fox’s from last season. Barrett excelled as one of the best transition players in the NBA, finishing top five in fast break points per game and the top 20 in points in the paint. Feats only Giannis, LeBron, and Barrett were able to accomplish last season. That said, Barrett shot below league average at the rim, finishing on just 55% of his shots there despite a majority of his shot diet coming there. While he was formidable operating in the pick and roll, especially when paired alongside a good screener like Yaka Purle, his lack of a pull-up jumper, he shot 19% from three on pull-ups last season, limited his versatility, and he mostly created in these actions by just barreling his way to the basket. It didn’t help that Barrett shot just 63% from the free throw line once he got to the rim. Context matters here, though. While Barrett needs to improve from the line, his shot quality was inherently more challenging last season because of how injured the Raptors were. The trio of Quickly, Barnes, and Barrett only spent 285 minutes together last season. Opposing defenses could key in on R.J. more frequently, knowing he was the number one option on most nights. Barrett did however have an overall good shooting season, knocking down 36% of his threes, shooting 37% on catch and shoot looks, and nearly 40% on unguarded shots. And that will be an essential swing skill next season alongside Brandon Ingram and Scotty Barnes, who will no doubt get the bulk of on ball opportunity. Look, there’s no question that Barrett has grown substantially in his time in Toronto. He is a genuinely positive and impactful NBA player right now with a unique set of skills that he’ll be able to nurture as the years go on. But naturally, Barrett’s game will look more different compared to last season. His role will be different, and how he fits into what the Raptors are doing will likely dictate if he’s part of the team long term. It’ll all come down to his cutting. In his first 32 games with the Toronto Raptors in the 2023 2024 season, Barrett was tasked with working more off of the ball. He had to play off of Pascal Seakkum. And then when Spicy P was traded, the Raptors gave Barnes ample opportunity to stretch his legs as an onball creator. Barrett was excellent. He generated 1.4 points per possession on over 60 cuts in 32 games for the Raptors, ranking in the 72nd percentile. For context, Barrett had only two seasons in New York where he registered over 60 cuts total. He did it in just 32 games for the Raptors in 2023 2024. The Raptors offense, predicated on quick decision-making, forced Barrett to move without the ball in order to get the ball. Their slanted actions armed with curling drives off of the weak side and empty side dribble handoffs paired exceptionally well with Barrett’s downhill driving game. Darko’s system was a match made in heaven for RJ Barrett offball savant. And as we look forward to next season, there will be a two-prong system to RJ’s game. first working off of spot-ups and cuts in the starting unit and shooting a sustainable percentage on catch and shoot threes, cutting into openings and feasting in transition. Defensively, the idea would be that his positional size and the Raptor size across the board will be functional enough for Barrett to make an impact on that end. Second, dominating transitional lineups against bench units. There will be moments where Barrett can sharpen his instrument as an onball creator, work in pick and rolls, be a facilitator of sorts, and help uplift the Raptors secondary units. This right here is the recipe for R.J. not only to avoid getting traded from Toronto, but to thrive in his hometown and become a part of the next playoff team. It’s the way he can take the next step in his career while the Raptors can take their next step in the evolutionary process. and Barrett has all the tools requisite to go out and do it. Thank you for watching this video. Let us know what you think about it. Uh RJ Barrett was awesome last season for the Toronto Raptors. We’ll see what happens this year and let us know what your thoughts are on Barrett, the Raptor season, and just generally how excited you are to watch some Raptors basketball soon. Take care.

RJ Barrett has been at the forefront of the Raptors rumour mill for a couple of months but he doesn’t need to be traded. Esfandiar Baraheni breaks it down.

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