https://www.sportsnet.ca/nba/article/analyzing-the-early-returns-of-raptors-trade-with-knicks/The Toronto Raptors look different since the trade. That much we can say with certainty. They’re more fun. More spirited. Built more logically, capably and effectively on offence. It’s been a good start.
How much of this is sustainable, and in which forms, remains a valid question. At the outset of every year, we’re reminded that things start to stabilize around the 20-game mark. It stands to reason that 20 games is a useful sample size following a trade shakeup, too. An exciting 3-3 start is all we have, but we can still examine some of the trends we’re seeing following the paradigm shift.
Here are some early returns to keep an eye on.
Scottie Barnes’ role at both ends
Barnes taking only 10 field-goal attempts Wednesday in a game without Pascal Siakam raised some eyebrows. It was a game, however, in which Barnes saw heavy attention from the Clippers’ stable of quality defensive forwards, and one in which Barnes continued a trend of willingly allowing space for new pieces RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley to find their offence. Barnes is a team-first offensive player, someone happy to facilitate for others and use the defensive attention he draws to benefit others.
Still, it’s notable that Barnes’ usage rate has taken a hit since the trade. Over these six games, Barnes ranks fourth on the team in usage rate at 21.3 percent. Prior to the trade, he was second, just narrowly behind Siakam at 24 percent.
Usage rate is a measure of what share of possessions a player finishes offensively while on the court, with either a shot, trip to the free-throw line or turnover. These last five games represent his second-lowest usage five-game stretch of the season, as a scorer.
Barnes has also averaged 5.8 assists during that time and trails only Quickley in assist rate during that time. Usage rate is a helpful indicator, but only of scoring usage; Barnes is still heavily involved in the offence overall. In fact, Barnes leads the team in frontcourt touches per game, and if we blend scoring and passing usage, he trails only Quickley. You can be a very impactful player without a heavy scoring load – there have been seven MVPs in league history with a usage rate below 25 percent, and while the non-Steve Nash examples of that are outdated, one out of every six All-NBA players the last decade have had a sub-25 percent usage rate. (Barnes is at 24.4 for the season now.)
Quickley stole Barrett’s favorite player
One thing I’ve always really appreciated about Barrett is that he’s a legitimate Raptors fan. So much so that he always makes sure to mention Jose Calderon as one of the players he grew up watching. Calderon is king around these parts.
It’s Quickley, though, who is doing a Caleron impression since arriving.
Quickley has dished 37 assists to just six turnovers, a remarkable 6.2:1 ratio. Calderon holds the franchise record for assist-to-turnover ratio in a season at 5.4:1. Calderon obviously did it over a much larger sample than 187 minutes, but you have to respect Quickley’s accidental nod to the history of good Raptors point guard play.
Barrett fitting in perfectly
Barrett’s inclusion in the trade was a fun story, given his roots in the city, as a Raptors fan, and with the national program. From an on-court perspective, though, it was more about whether Barrett could smooth out some of the rougher edges to his game to become a better version of the Barrett we’ve seen for five years. If he could do that, his contract, despite what some league execs may think, would be fine, a fair price for a starting-calibre player.
If he’s now the league’s most efficient player, we’ll have to revisit that framing. Of course, Barrett isn’t going to shoot 59.3 percent overall and 53.6 percent from three forever. He’s had very hot stretches before only to cool off again later, something Knicks fans could at times grow frustrated with. Even if the percentages decline, though, Barrett already looks like a much better version of himself in Toronto’s ecosystem.
