Morning Coffee - Feb. 26, 2025

Rough 3pt shooting in loss to the Celtics; did someone say tank?

Feb 26, 2025

Quick Reaction: Celtics 111, Raptors 101 - Raptors Republic
S. Barnes - A

34 MIN, 21 PTS, 3 REB, 6 AST, 2 STL, 7-14 FG, 0-5 3FG, 7-9 FT, 2 TO, -6 +/-

Scottie B was super aggressive in the first half and he was more rowdy than usual tonight as he was chirping at the Celtics big time (mostly Tatum.) He also picked up Jayson Tatum a few times giving full-court pressure on inbounds to try to disrupt his game but that’s easier said than done. Most of his damage came from the mid-range which is becoming his bread and butter. Scottie’s defensive pressure was phenomenal tonight and we saw one of his best offensive rebounding games in quite some time as he capitalized on Boston’s lack of bigs.

Raptors learn where they stand in relation to the champs - Sportsnet
Perhaps the Celtics' biggest advantage is that they have several stars, though how you define the word determines how many. The Celtics’ top superstar is Jayson Tatum, who is a near lock to earn all-NBA honours for the fifth time and for the fourth straight year as a first-team selection. He leads the Celtics in points per game (26.8), rebounds per game (8.8) and assists per game (5.7).

The Raptors can only hope Scottie Barnes will become to them what Tatum is to Boston. They share a lot of similar qualities as big, rugged wings who can punish smaller matchups with bully ball. But Tatum’s game is more varied: his three-point shooting (37.6 per cent for his career) is better that league average, and he gets them up from every angle while averaging 10 attempts a game this season.

Tatum was 3-of-12 Tuesday. But perhaps the most encouraging thing from Boston’s point of view is that he’s still developing. Tatum’s 11 assists against Toronto marked the fourth time in nine games he’s cracked double-digit helpers, and he had another game with nine. He’s on pace for a career high. Celtics insiders point to Tatum’s passing as being a big contributor to Boston’s recent surge.

Barnes had his moments against the Celtics. The best of them came in the first half as he put his shoulder down and bulled his way to the rim multiple times. It’s that kind of force that makes the defense collapse and allows Barnes to use his passing ability for a bigger impact.

Barnes' shooting has miles to go. He was 0-of-5 from deep against Boston and is now shooting 26.4 per cent from behind the arc. Going forward he’ll either have to get better from that range or come up with an alternative plan. In his fourth season, Barnes’ potential remains apparent, but there’s a big gap between the level he’s at and where Tatum has been for the past four or five years.

Boston is on pace to shatter the NBA record for three-pointers made and attempted this season. They get up 48.3 per game and score nearly 54 points a game from behind the arc. Boston has eight players averaging at least 1.8 made threes per game. The Raptors are second-last in the NBA in three-point attempts (33.0) and makes (11.7), and have just three players making more than 1.8 per game.

The Celtics didn’t even have a particularly good night shooting the ball – they finished 15-of-51, 29.4 per cent – but when they’re getting up that many attempts it almost doesn’t matter. They can catch fire and go cold multiple times in a 48-miniute game.

Boston jumped out to healthy first-quarter lead by going 5-of-11 from deep while the Raptors were 0-of-9. Boston was ice cold after that, but its two threes in the fourth quarter – both by White – helped keep the Raptors at arm’s length.

Celtics overcome feisty Raptors, win in Toronto 111-101 - Celtics Blog
Scottie Barnes was super fired up to take on the Celtics in this one, taking Queta strong to the hole and chirping in Tatum’s face. The Raptors second leading scorer poured in six straight points to start the second quarter and push Toronto back with 5 points. Barnes then drove again on Queta and drew another foul, which saw Neemias go to the bench with his third foul.

Boston would have just two points in the first four and a half minutes of the second quarter as Toronto cut the Boston lead to just one point. Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum scored on consecutive plays as they broke the scoring drought for the second-placed team. Both teams started hitting three-point shots, Grady Dick hit the Raptors second three-pointer of the game, then Hauser and White connected for the C’s sixth and seventh triples on the evening.

The road Celtics finally started to roll as the second quarter progressed; White hit on another triple for his twelfth point, and Brown drove and connected on a sweet mini hook shot. Tatum started to get going, hitting on a pull-up three-pointer, assisting JB for a dunk in the key, and then hitting a floater as Boston pulled away by 12 points to lead 66-54 at the half.

Toronto started the third quarter strong, scoring the first seven points of the half as Boston struggled to keep pace. The Raps got the lead back to 6 points before Brown stopped the bleeding. With Boston lacking in size tonight, the team would look to everyone to contribute; this was evident on a second-chance weak-side rebound from Pritchard, who then found Tatum in the corner to step into a three-pointer. White had a monster block on Dick. Pritchard would then drive on the bigger-bodied Barnes to sell a head fake and lay the ball in, as Boston would go up by 12, 76-64.

White had yet another huge block on RJ Barrett as the lanky guard denied the ball with two hands. Boston then found a waiting Pritchard, who calmly hit his third three-pointer and 15th point of the night. JD Davison would also see time in the third for Boston as Joe Mazzulla gave the stay-ready guys meaningful minutes in Toronto. Hauser hit on his 10th point of the night with a three-pointer at the top of the key, and then Pritchard had a last-second triple as time expired in the third quarter, Boston up by its largest lead of the night with thirteen, 89-76.

Brown was struggling with leg issues all night but returned to action in the fourth hitting on a step-back bucket over Barnes. He then drove on Barnes and connected on a bank shot in the key over a double team. The Raptors pesky length was making life difficult for Boston as soon as they brought the ball over the half way line. The Celtics turned the ball over multiple times to start the fourth and a Agbaji three-pointer saw Boston’s advantage shrink to just 8 points.

White went 4th quarter mode as he scored on consecutive baskets. First, he pulled off a nasty spin move that led to a floater and then he hit a deep three-pointer for his 19th point of the night as Boston steadied 102-93. Raptor rookie Jamal Shead drove and scored his sixth point to get it back to seven. Both teams traded baskets to finish it, as Boston would hold on against a pesky Raptor team.

Boston Celtics two-way player gets unexpected chance in Raptors win - Mass Live
Joe Mazzulla did not have a lot of options on his bench Tuesday night in a win against the Raptors with four rotation players sidelined before even the opening tip. Things got tougher early in the third quarter when Jaylen Brown pulled himself out of the game after he came up limping with a knee injury.

With Torrey Craig and Sam Hauser already a part of the starting five and Payton Pritchard getting the starting nod at halftime, Mazzulla had to look deep down the bench for some reserve minutes in the third quarter. Two-way guard JD Davison was the beneficiary of the opportunity alongside some other wings (Baylor Scheierman, Jordan Walsh) throughout the game.

Davidson had appeared in five games for the Celtics this year prior to Tuesday night but all of those chances came in garbage time minutes. The Raptors game was a different story as Davison played alongside Jayson Tatum in the third quarter in what was his first real shot at rotation minutes this year. Joe Mazzulla spoke about what led to him turning to Davison in the victory.

“You have to come in every day to do your job and be ready to impact winning,” Mazzulla told reporters in Toronto. “Those guys do a great job of always staying ready. [JD] didn’t know he was going to play but at the same time he treats every day like it’s the most important day for him. He was ready to go and everyone who got out there today impacted winning.”

Davison, 22, finished was scoreless in his four minutes, missing one shot attempt while tallying a rebound, assist and a steal. He is in the midst of his third and final year of eligibility as a two-way player with the Celtics so opportunities like these are critical for Davison when assessing his future. He’s put up terrific numbers in Maine all year long and throughout his career but questions remain whether he’s development will lead to a 15-man NBA roster spot.

There were a couple defensive bright spots in his performance but offensively, he did not handle Toronto’s ball pressure particularly well. He missed his one shot attempt on a floater in the lane but to his credit, didn’t try to do too much in a lineup without much firepower beyond Tatum.

Tanking 101: So you want the Toronto Raptors to tank, welcome! - Raptors HQ
“Tanking” is really precarious idea in NBA Basketball. Lose now, win at the draft. Yet, it has to be done so strategically that no one can truly prove you’re tanking. Also, even when you tank as hard as you can, the odds aren’t spectacular when it comes to getting the no.1 pick in the draft.

Let’s take the Raptors, for instance. Right now they have the 5th best draft odds in the NBA, with a record of 18-40. That means they have a 42.1% chance at getting a top-4 draft pick, and a 10.5% chance of getting the no.1 overall pick. The Washington Wizards currently have the worst record in the NBA, and therefore the best draft odds. Even so, they still only have 52.1% chance of getting a top-4 pick, and a 14% chance of getting the no.1 pick, at the moment. It really is all up to the lottery ball gods.

In simple terms, the worse your season record, the better your odds — which is why fans of teams that are “tanking” want them to lose so badly. Yet, even when you lose the most, there is no guarantee you get a top-pick.

So here we are in (nearly) March, 18-40 for Toronto and it’s still not good enough to get into that top-3 odds conversation. It does not help that Toronto also has one of the easiest schedules to end the season in comparison to other teams, which leads to another factor — players generally don’t want to tank. They want to win. If they can, they will.

We played some really good games. We had one game that was really bad in Boston. But other than that, I think that we’re excited when we play against teams and players like this. You can see the guys, they’re even more locked in than usual. They really want to go out there. - Darko Rajakovic

Tanking isn’t something that is executed by the players, because they have the mentality of going out on the court and trying to win. They want to get better, they want to be good. They are thinking of the present, not the future.

It’s all a very intricate balance.

When you look at a team like [Boston], they do a really good job of exposing some of your weaknesses. There is a lot of stuff for you to take into account when you’re preparing scouting. — Darko Rajakovic

The lost arc: Raptors throw away their shot against Celtics - Toronto Star
“I thought the quality of those shots were good; the ball did not go in tonight,” coach Darko Rajakovic said. “We’ve got to be proud of what we did. We had (27) assists while shooting 15 per cent from the three-point line.

“I thought we did play extremely hard. Really proud of our effort tonight. A lot for us to learn from this and get better.”

It was indeed a tough night from three-point range for normally consistent shooters: Immanuel Quickley (0-for-6), Scottie Barnes (0-for-5), RJ Barrett (1-for-5), Gradey Dick (2-for-7). Those are unusual totals that will always end up in a loss.

The trouble was, the Raptors looked their best for a short stretch of the second quarter when they (Barnes in particular) were putting their heads down and punishing the Celtics in the paint. Barnes was dominant with three baskets at the rim and three more foul shots in about seven minutes of the quarter, but that’s about as long as it lasted.

“That came kind of like in the open court, in transition, and Scottie was with the ball and he was able to attack right away,” the coach said. “I’ve got to see the film, but I don’t think they made any adjustments in that regard. I just thought that Scottie was extremely aggressive and he was in position to be aggressive in those secondary offences, early offence, and to attack.”

The question is whether Barnes or any Raptor can find a way to be more assertive outside of transition opportunities when the outside shots aren’t falling.

And with this being an entire season spent on development and looking for improvement, that might be something to look more closely at in the final 24 games of the season.

Takeaways for Toronto as Raptors Fall in Tough Fight vs. Celtics - Sports Illustrated
For a brief moment Tuesday night, it looked like Scottie Barnes might not be himself again. Tangled up with Torrey Craig under the hoop, he took an awkward shove, tripped, and immediately grabbed his leg. As he hobbled up the court, wincing in pain, he appeared concerned.

Typically, that kind of discomfort has spelled trouble for Barnes, whose game relies so much on his athleticism and burst. Just last week, an ankle injury against Miami had sapped his explosiveness and led to a quiet night.

This time, though, things were different.

After a sluggish first quarter for Toronto, Barnes took control to start the second. He attacked Boston’s undermanned frontcourt, relentlessly driving to the hoop and sparking a 7-0 Raptors run. It was a stretch that highlighted exactly what makes him so dangerous when he gets downhill, using his speed and strength to overwhelm mismatches inside.

Barnes got things rolling with a tough turnaround jumper, absorbing contact from Derrick White and finishing from 12 feet out. Moments later, he showcased his physicality, driving at Boston’s 7-foot center Neemias Queta and powering through him for a bucket. When the Celtics adjusted later in the quarter by sending a double-team in the paint, Barnes responded by finding RJ Barrett with a pinpoint pass under the hoop.

"I just thought that Scottie was extremely aggressive, and he was in position to be aggressive in those secondary offense, early offense, and to attack," Rajaković said. "I thought that he did a great job getting all the way to the rim and finishing several times against their bigs, and finishing over Queta."

The problem for Barnes against Boston — and frankly all season — has been his shooting from behind the arc. He missed a wide-open three early in the fourth as the Raptors tried to cut into the Celtics’ double-digit lead and finished Tuesday 0-for-5 from three-point range.

Still what Barnes showed Tuesday was the kind of performance against a tough opponent the Raptors will need more of down the road and into next season. When he's aggressive, he's tough to contain and his 21 point against Boston showing proved it.

NBA Power Rankings: Cavaliers claim top spot; Lakers, Warriors are lurking - The Athletic
This week: 25
Last week: 26
In the last week: L vs. MIA, W vs. PHO
Offensive rating: 110.2 (25th)
Defensive rating: 115.6 (25th)

Post All-Star break: The Raptors are four games in the loss column out of the final Play-In Tournament spot. But Brandon Ingram has yet to take the floor since being acquired at the trade deadline. The way Toronto moves the ball and hits the paint makes it a tough team to deal with as a potential spoiler.

Steph Curry is No. 1 on list of top 20 scorers in Toronto against the Raptors. Some other names will surprise you - Toronto Star
1. Steph Curry: 29.0 (10 games)

2. Allen Iverson: 28.4 (18)

3. LeBron James: 27.9 (30)

4. Kevin Durant: 27.7 (15)

5. Trae Young: 27.2 (10)

6. Damian Lillard: 27.2 (13)

7. Victor Wembanyama: 27.0 (1)

8. Robert Pack: 27.0 (1)

9. Tyrese Maxey: 26.7 (6)

10. James Harden: 26.7 (15)

11. Kobe Bryant: 26.6 (16)

12. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: 26.5 (6)