Official RJ Barrett Thread

[everdiso]

At least Darko has instantly recognized that RJ shouldn't be a part of the closing lineup.

The Raps know what RJ is.

[ATLTimekeeper]

I worked on raps game tonight and was shocked that the halftime panel called RJ the main return on the trade. Can't remember the exact phrase used....but u right. That's how the trade is being sold. Kinda surprising to me but whatever.

In anycase...RJ attacks the rim. It's gonna be ugly sometimes and when it doesn't work....it's the type of thing that many fans exaggerate in terms of impact.

I honestly thought OG was overrated by some fans because what you give up on offense with him isn't obvious to the eye test. The raptors needed more traditional basketball players. Og, siakam, Barnes are all kinda hard to define as players. Not traditional American ballers that grew up playing one on one in the schoolyard. Ball handling, specifically, was a deficit with the combo of those 3. Siakam has a decent handle. Scotty has a decent handle. OG has a horrible handle. Too much of a deficit in an important skill for a top 3 mix.

RJ has a decent handle and quickley has a great handle. So we immediately went from perhaps the bottom 5 teams in regards to ballhandling to at least average and possibly slightly above average with this trade.

Ppl will complain about RJs decision-making but he makes mistakes he's at least attacking the rim and pressuring the defense. Drawing fouls ain't a sexy attribute but it was something we were missing. Without a star player running the offense....OG was a real liability for us.

That's not a diss on OG. He just belongs on a team with a doncic or Harden or Morant. Brunson fits the bill I think.

The one on one observation is weird. OG and Scottie definitely grew up in America playing one on one, and Siakam's handle is excellent for a 6"9 guy. I can only think of KD and Giannis who are better ballhandlers that are 6"9 or taller. And Banchero will soon eclipse him. Guys grow up playing different positions, or develop based on their level of co-ordination. Typically shorter players are better ballhandlers, because they're in the league at a height disadvantage because their skills in shooting or handling are just that good.

The Raptors thought they could cheat those guard skills in lieu of a defensive advantage, and obviously it didn't work. RJ isn't a great ballhandler, but he's a scorer with a traditional scorer's mentality and his ballhandling is good enough to create in transition and attack closeouts, and he's got enough scoring craft to draw a foul or finish through contact when he's cut off. He doesn't have to just run into the guy and hope he gets the block call.

[kwajo]

I know people are throwing different comparisons around, mainly DeMar, but to me RJ is very much like Tobias Harris in his role. Plays a strong starting role on good teams, contributes 18-20 ppg, is an ideal 3rd or 4th option, knows who he is and what his game is, and will carve out a long career as a guy in the tier below All-Stars. Both have been/will be debated as over paid or not, but ultimately are important pieces to have on the floor.

[TheAlchemist23]

RJ plays like a young Harden without the quick twitch athleticism and shooting ability

2 straight games where he's good in the first half and atrocious in the second half

[Dennis 37]

At least Darko has instantly recognized that RJ shouldn't be a part of the closing lineup.

The Raps know what RJ is.

It depends. He us a very confident free throw shooter. Don't think DeRozan's daughter would get to him.

[djsunyc]

jekyll and hyde. for where we are as a team, that's fine. keep his usage down and mitigate his bad decisions. will take time. i like his fit and role with us.

[TheGeneral99]

He shows some decent flashes but I'm worried about his IQ...just a really bad decision-maker with tunnel vision at times.

[sbsat]

RJ was great defensively all game vs memphis which is a huge plus

[MiamiSPX]

In the 1st half I was envisioning him retiring as a Raptor.
In the 2nd half I was envisioning what we could flip him for at the deadline.

[TheGeneral99]

I know people are throwing different comparisons around, mainly DeMar, but to me RJ is very much like Tobias Harris in his role. Plays a strong starting role on good teams, contributes 18-20 ppg, is an ideal 3rd or 4th option, knows who he is and what his game is, and will carve out a long career as a guy in the tier below All-Stars. Both have been/will be debated as over paid or not, but ultimately are important pieces to have on the floor.

Not really, Tobias has always been a very good shooter for all parts of the floor with excellent form while Barrett is more of a power forward type player who is an okay shooter with bad form.

[sbsat]

At least Darko has instantly recognized that RJ shouldn't be a part of the closing lineup.

The Raps know what RJ is.

Darko was playing offense/defense and match ups. Dennis was doing well against this memphis defense, I don't think this is something Darko will revert to every game. As annoying as RJ was in the 2nd half, his defense was solid throughout

[sbsat]

I know people are throwing different comparisons around, mainly DeMar, but to me RJ is very much like Tobias Harris in his role. Plays a strong starting role on good teams, contributes 18-20 ppg, is an ideal 3rd or 4th option, knows who he is and what his game is, and will carve out a long career as a guy in the tier below All-Stars. Both have been/will be debated as over paid or not, but ultimately are important pieces to have on the floor.

Not really, Tobias has always been a very good shooter for all parts of the floor with excellent form while Barrett is more of a power forward type player who is an okay shooter with bad form.

tje comparison to tobias makes absolutely zero sense, no offense to the poster. Tobias is solid in the mid range and is a consistent shooter. Also RJs defense is better

[carlosey]

At least Darko has instantly recognized that RJ shouldn't be a part of the closing lineup.

The Raps know what RJ is.

They were scoring on the raps at will to close the game. Its more of a love affair with Dennis IMO.

[Boardbreaker]

Some really questionable decision making at times but still miles better than Precious and Malachi were. I’m just hoping he continues to get the whistle he has because it will look pretty ugly if he doesn’t get calls.

[Dexjackson]

The two biggest issues with Barrett are his inefficient jumper and his tunnel vision. Both should be fixable. He's passable on defense if not solid when he focuses.

If the Raptors thought they could fix some of this, he's an all-star. We went years watching Aichuwa, FVV, Boucher and GTJ high-jacking the offense. Let's give Barrett a chance to see if he can make it work here. Last game we already saw how huge having 4 ball handlers who can all score was for the offense and Barrett's ability to get to the rim is absolutely huge. Him and Quickley also looked very good rotating on defense (thank you Thibodeau).

He's going to be frustrating at times, but he's very young and this is a big change of scenery. I also think Barnes, Barrett and Quickley are going to get along very well.

I agree with everything you said. I thought he showed some much better vision/unselfishness today than his first. What did you think? Obviously a small sample size but if he can buy in to the team ball, I think he can become a positive influence on the game (beyond the empty stats). The shot is a different story. I doubt they'll work on that in season but hopefully in the offseason he can focus on that.

[Dexjackson]

A lot of the talk has been about Barrett on the offensive end, and ways he can improve there. I think what might be just as significant is if he can improve on the defensive end.

He's had moments where he's been a good defender, and has definitely improved since his first couple of years in the league, but overall it's not a strength. The problem is, without OG we're really going to need someone to take those primary matchups against wing players, and I'd prefer it not be Scottie.

We've seen Scottie be used to his strengths on D this year, playing closer to the paint, which allows him to read the play and slide over for rim protection. I don't really think it's in the team's best interest for Scottie to go back to chasing guys around off screens on the perimeter. Pascal can do some of that if he's kept, but he's also a bit too lanky at times to really navigate some of that area of the court.

IQ likely will eventually take on the smaller guards, but they need someone to handle primary duties on the bigger guards and wings. To the extent that defence can be worked on and developed, that should be a key goal for RJ in practice and throughout next summer.

I agree. I think even if Scottie is a better on ball defender, I prefer Barrett taking on more of those assignments. I don't think we can afford to lose the impact of Scottie's off ball defense down low.

[Tha Cynic]

The two biggest issues with Barrett are his inefficient jumper and his tunnel vision. Both should be fixable. He's passable on defense if not solid when he focuses.

If the Raptors thought they could fix some of this, he's an all-star. We went years watching Aichuwa, FVV, Boucher and GTJ high-jacking the offense. Let's give Barrett a chance to see if he can make it work here. Last game we already saw how huge having 4 ball handlers who can all score was for the offense and Barrett's ability to get to the rim is absolutely huge. Him and Quickley also looked very good rotating on defense (thank you Thibodeau).

He's going to be frustrating at times, but he's very young and this is a big change of scenery. I also think Barnes, Barrett and Quickley are going to get along very well.

I agree with everything you said. I thought he showed some much better vision/unselfishness today than his first. What did you think? Obviously a small sample size but if he can buy in to the team ball, I think he can become a positive influence on the game (beyond the empty stats). The shot is a different story. I doubt they'll work on that in season but hopefully in the offseason he can focus on that.

Yeah agreed. He's understanding where to find his new guys and making an effort to pass out. All he really has to do is stop the contested 3s and trying to go 1 on 4 on fast breaks. Sometimes it works though, so you like the fouls he draws there. I thought Darko also did a great job of pulling him when he made a couple of mistakes in the 4th. This will help him understand what he can and can't do in a tight game.

[Madhouse]

I'm not expecting him to look different than he looked at New York this season.

It will be interesting to see if he can change and develop throughout the offseason though.

[brownbobcat]

I know people are throwing different comparisons around, mainly DeMar, but to me RJ is very much like Tobias Harris in his role. Plays a strong starting role on good teams, contributes 18-20 ppg, is an ideal 3rd or 4th option, knows who he is and what his game is, and will carve out a long career as a guy in the tier below All-Stars. Both have been/will be debated as over paid or not, but ultimately are important pieces to have on the floor.

Not really, Tobias has always been a very good shooter for all parts of the floor with excellent form while Barrett is more of a power forward type player who is an okay shooter with bad form.

He's talking about role, not skillset. You could live with RJ as your 2 if he doesn't try to do too much, although I agree that a jumper is going to be the make-or-break element for a guy adjusting to playing more off-ball.

[ConSarnit]

RJ is gonna be a source of hate from casual fans. Free throw attempts aren't reflected in efficiency numbers. Efficiency #s are the love of video game and fantasy league fans. OG could not dribble the ball. RJ can dribble. It's one upside even tho OG is clearly the better player currently. Rj can say "eff it" and bully his way into the paint.

Casual has been called.

I see it the other way around. Casuals are going to drink the TSN/Sportsnet Kool-aid that he was the prize of this trade. They might turn on him if he doesn't live up to that hype though. Casuals don't typically know about advanced stats.

Maybe by casual you mean Blog Boys?

I worked on raps game tonight and was shocked that the halftime panel called RJ the main return on the trade. Can't remember the exact phrase used....but u right. That's how the trade is being sold. Kinda surprising to me but whatever.

In anycase...RJ attacks the rim. It's gonna be ugly sometimes and when it doesn't work....it's the type of thing that many fans exaggerate in terms of impact.

I honestly thought OG was overrated by some fans because what you give up on offense with him isn't obvious to the eye test. The raptors needed more traditional basketball players. Og, siakam, Barnes are all kinda hard to define as players. Not traditional American ballers that grew up playing one on one in the schoolyard. Ball handling, specifically, was a deficit with the combo of those 3. Siakam has a decent handle. Scotty has a decent handle. OG has a horrible handle. Too much of a deficit in an important skill for a top 3 mix.

RJ has a decent handle and quickley has a great handle. So we immediately went from perhaps the bottom 5 teams in regards to ballhandling to at least average and possibly slightly above average with this trade.

Ppl will complain about RJs decision-making but he makes mistakes he's at least attacking the rim and pressuring the defense. Drawing fouls ain't a sexy attribute but it was something we were missing. Without a star player running the offense....OG was a real liability for us.

That's not a diss on OG. He just belongs on a team with a doncic or Harden or Morant. Brunson fits the bill I think.

OG was not a liability for us. His ability to hit 3's is extremely valuable. The entire league runs on floor spacing and he was one of the few guys who could take and make 3's on this team. Yes OG would be served better on a team with an offensive hub but that didn't make him a liability while here.