TORONTO — If the Toronto Raptors had raised a few eyebrows when they put Scottie Barnes on their training camp roster, Monday’s masterful performance would have silenced the critics.
Three nights after playing center against Philadelphia, and with Fred VanVleet nursing a sore back, Barnes filled the point admirably, finishing with 21 points, eight assists and seven rebounds in Toronto’s 139-109 rout of the Atlanta Hawks.
“I was just taking the looks they were giving me, trying to capitalize, make the right plays at the right time,” Barnes said.
Pascal Siakam had 31 points and 12 rebounds in Toronto’s seventh straight win over the Hawks at Scotiabank Arena. Gary Trent Jr. added 21 points, OG Anunoby finished with 14 points and six steals, Chris Boucher added 11 points and Precious Achiuwa had 10 for Toronto (4-3).
Dejounte Murray led Atlanta (4-3) with 20 points.
On the heels of an ugly 112-90 loss to Philadelphia on Friday, the Raptors led for most of the night and gained as much as 17 points late in the third quarter before taking a 95- 80 in the fourth.
A pair of free throws from Achiuwa gave Toronto a 20-point lead less than a minute into the fourth quarter, before Murray’s layup cut the difference to 15. But the Raptors responded to each Hawks run, and when rookie Christian Koloko – who won his first NBA start – hit the hoop for a dunk, the basket gave Toronto a 24-point lead, much to the delight of the crowd of 19,800 in attendance. Scotiabank Arena.
Fans chanted “MVP!” when Siakam connected on two free throws with 5:22 left. The baskets gave Toronto a 29 lead and coach Nick Nurse emptied his bench at the time.
While Nurse praised Barnes’ ability to lead the offense, he was more impressed with his defensive effort. The Raptors had a great night on defense, forcing 18 turnovers from the Hawks for 24 points.
“(Barnes) was pushing, he was dancing the ball, throwing forward for transition buckets, really got us going on transition offense – but his defense was outstanding tonight,” Nurse said.
The 6-9 Barnes, who played point guard at Florida State, said on the season-opening media day that he was looking forward to playing more on point this season.
“He can play any position, and the good thing is he’s ready to do that,” Koloko said of Barnes. “When the coaches tell him to play (in the middle), he’s okay with that… he’s ready to do it for the team. That’s exactly the type of player he is.”
Barnes hit three straight three-pointers in less than a minute in the first quarter, and Boucher’s three-pointer with 3:07 left in the frame capped a 7-0 run that put Toronto up 11. They led 34-28 to start the second.
Young’s three midway through the second quarter saw the Hawks earn three points, but Barnes’ three-pointer was the exclamation point on a 20-4 Raptors run that put them down 13. is headed into halftime leading 64 -53.
The Hawks came within a point early in the third quarter, but their momentum was short-lived, and when Trent connected on a pair of free throws late in the frame, the Raptors took a 17-point lead. , their biggest lead to this point.
“A team like this will hit you like they did,” Hawks coach Nate McMillan said. “I thought there was more urgency coming from them. They played harder. They knocked us out.”
VANVLEET OUT
VanVleet will at least have to wait another game to make up for his 0-on-11 shooting night in Friday’s loss to Philadelphia. He sat out Monday’s game a day after being unable to practice due to a stiff lower back.
“I thought he would be ready to go tonight, but he wasn’t,” Nurse said.
ALL IN THE FAMILY
The game marked the first time AJ Griffin, the son of Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin and a Hawks rookie, faced his father’s team in an NBA game.
“It’s pretty cool, especially for Griff, Griff and I are pretty close,” Nurse said. “We watched a lot of basketball at Duke (where AJ played) last year. He’s proud…He’s a very, very nice young guy. When the ball goes up, we have to make sure he doesn’t don’t open it, because he can shoot.”
NEXT
The Raptors travel to Texas for games in San Antonio on Wednesday and Dallas on Friday. They’re back home to host DeMar DeRozan and the Chicago Bulls on Sunday.
The Hawks travel to New York and face the Knicks on Wednesday.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on October 31, 2022.
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