Should RJ start or be the 6th man

[bluerap23]

Back in 2024 Darko compared RJ to Manu Ginobili. Could that have been a tell on RJ's future role with the team?

Manu famously accepted a 6th man role with the Spurs after becoming an all-star and nba champion. He agreed to give up his starting job to an inferior overall player for the good of the team. Should RJ follow suit?

For Raptors coach Darko Rajaković, Barrett’s seven-assist performance brought back memories of one of the league’s most revered left-handed playmakers.
Manu Ginóbili.
“We had a conversation, couple weeks ago, I told him I see some of that type of play in him,” Rajaković said of Barrett. “That he can actually attack, that he sees the floor really well. And then that's what we need for him to do.”
Ginóbili is the embodiment of how Rajaković wants the Raptors to play. He was a do-it-all guard who made quick decisions, could nail three-pointers with ease, get into the paint, and had the playmaking chops to keep defenders off balance with his passing prowess.
“Of course, it’s a big compliment, one of the greatest,” Barrett said.

https://www.si.com/nba/raptors/news/toronto-raptors-compare-rj-barrett-to-manu-ginobili-following-impressive-playmaking-performance

[Tripod]

Personally, I think he should be 6th man when everyone is healthy(Ochai starting). But be a starter when BI, Barnes, etc... miss games.

So reality be a starter for 40%, bench 60%.

But I also see them wanting to see how the main 5 mesh 1st before making any move. Maybe they hunt mismatches and BECAUSE the #3/4 options are much better than other teams, that's the area to exploit.

Time will tell.

But I do believe that if RJ is moved, we will miss his ability to get to the rim and score especially since we know our main scoring option will miss games. We have way more defensive depth than we have scoring depth.

[Jerry Lucas]

This isn't really a conversation to be had anymore in the near term. The only real way RJ would have been the 6th man this season would be if the Raptors had won one of the top 2 picks in the lottery getting either Flagg or Harper.

Since that didn't happen, it's not as if someone like Ochai/Gradey/CMB/Ja'Kobe is going to supplant RJ from his spot in the starting group anytime soon, like before the regular season even starts.

Also, the primary issue with the starting group last year wasn't RJ specifically. It was the lack of combined defensive ability/impact from the trio of IQ/Gradey/RJ. The Raptors initial hope is that the acquisition of Ingram supplanting Gradey's starting spot will form a better 1-2-3 trio than they had last season.

[Godaddycurse]

He can start but let Agbaji close games out on defense

[alan_156]

He should definitely be 6th man. We need desperately need more scoring off the bench, RJ would give a huge boost so we don't have those scoring droughts. Gradey or Ochai in the starting 5 would balance the lineup more.

[Westside Gunn]

People need to stop using once in a generation basketball players for everyday comparisons. Manu played for one of the best systems in the world.

Our previous comparisons to Manu were Linas Klieza, Carlos Delfino, and Marco Belinelli. Please stop

[StopitLeo]

Definitely 6th man.

With Ingram here there is less need to spread the responsibility of initiating the offense around. Post-Siakam trade we saw that Scottie couldn't do it himself so RJ needed to carry some of that weight (albeit less than he did in NY, which was beneficial). Given that RJ's strengths bias towards offense over defense I think it would make more sense to have Ochai in the starting lineup as he ups the defense and 3 pt shooting.

RJ's best lineups last year were with Barnes, Poeltl, and Ochai so bring him in for Ingram and then play around with the 5th guy. The best 5-man combinations were with Davion or Ja'Kobe so start with IQ, Shead, and Ja'Kobe to see what works.

RJ has his shortcomings but he brings a different element to the offense that can help exploit mismatches.

[JB7]

He'll start, but I can see Darko pulling pieces from the starting lineup early, so that the starting 5 can be mixed up with different rotations off the bench.

Yak, Barnes, Dick, Agbaji & IQ would be a good lineup.
And anything with BI & RJ would be a good lineup. Could go all D with these guys: Mogbo, CMB, BI, RJ & Shead (or even swap Walter for Shead at times).

[HangTime]

6th man, but I wouldn't mind him starting and being subbed out about 2 minutes.

Ja'Kobe or CMB being the 6th man.
Two different styles, depending on how the opposition sets up.

[bluerap23]

People need to stop using once in a generation basketball players for everyday comparisons. Manu played for one of the best systems in the world.

Our previous comparisons to Manu were Linas Klieza, Carlos Delfino, and Marco Belinelli. Please stop

Well - it wasn't me, it was our head coach. I'm simply using it as an argument for why he should be 6th man. That said the players you are comparing are not in the same league as RJ.

[NinjaBro]

We need shooting. Throw Battle in the starting lineup.

[Tor_Raps]

You have to let RJ start and see how the team looks early in the season. If things dont go well then RJ would be the first guy to get yanked and replaced by Ochai (most likely).

Regardless, none of us know the work each player is actually putting in this offseason and the type of player they'll be next year. We should get a better sense during training camp/preseason to formulate concrete opinions.

[Los_29]

Ochai is such a perfect fit in our starting lineup. RJ is not. He needs the ball in his hands and I want the ball to be in BI’s hands not RJ’s. RJ can be great off the bench and will likely still see 30 minutes a game.

[NotMyKawhi]

I think going small and having him play the 4 is the way tbh

Hes strong enough and it will hide his shooting and defence.

[niQ]

If RJ accepted being the 6th man, he'd be a monster off the bench. He'd probably win the 6MOY award.

[SFour]

in an ideal world you would experiment with RJ being the 6th man to see if it works....in reality it won't happen because of egos/pecking order

[tsherkin]

in an ideal world you would experiment with RJ being the 6th man to see if it works....in reality it won't happen because of egos/pecking order

6th Man style would be interesting. But I think I agree with SFour here in that we should see how he performs as a starter before we make big moves.

[DreamTeam09]

You put your best 5 players on the court, RJ isn't a pylon on the floor defensively, & he's a dog for our team
Pre draft it's always BPA, as soon as the draft ends it's about fit 24/7
Is RJ costing us games at the 2, I absolutely think not

[Harcore Fenton Mun]

If he's off the bench, you crater his value. So, just move on and trade somebody else. By putting him on the bench, it's admitting he doesn't have the value we thought.

[LoveMyRaps]

RJ should start. Benching him totally diminishes his trade value.

You start the season w/ Quick-RJ-Ingram-Barnes-Poeltl

There's a chance that RJ excels with more space, defenses keying in on Ingram, and gets a lot more wide open catch & shoot opportunities.