The Toronto Raptors have opened the season with the look of a team that can clamp down on anybody. The problem is on the other end, where the 3-point shots just keep clanging off the rim.
Through their first two games, Toronto connected on only 17 of 65 attempts from deep, a 26.2% clip that left the team 28th in the NBA. Then came Sunday’s 117-94 loss to Minnesota, a game that made the numbers look even rougher. The Raptors finished 10-for-48 from 3-point range, good for just 20.8%.
Scottie Barnes had the toughest night of all. He missed every shot he took, going 0-for-12 from the field and missing all five of his 3-point tries.
Barnes’ game stood out as an outlier, but the wider problem is bigger than one rough performance. Barnes, RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley are combining to shoot 10-for-48 from beyond the arc, also 20.8%. Kawhi Leonard hit four of his 14 3-point attempts in his first two games before a left knee injury knocked him out.
The frustrating part for Toronto is that the misses are happening despite a strong flow of opportunities. The Raptors are averaging 13.5 more shot attempts per game than their opponents, which is the best margin in the league, according to NBA.com’s John Schuhmann. Even with that edge, they sit 19th in offensive rating.
And this isn’t a case of Toronto forcing up only bad looks. Schuhmann wrote that 56% of the Raptors’ 3-point attempts have been wide open, the seventh-highest rate in the NBA.
The chances are there. The makes are not.
That showed up clearly against Minnesota. Toronto forced 23 turnovers and finished with 12 more shot opportunities than the Timberwolves, who entered the matchup with the league’s top-ranked defense. None of it mattered in the end, as the Raptors still lost by 23.
The three-point issues are not new, either. Toronto has finished in the bottom 10 in 3-point percentage in each of the last four seasons. Last year, the Raptors shot 35.4% from deep, which ranked 21st, and they were 26th in 3-point attempts.
Barnes shot 30.4% from 3-point range last season, while Barrett finished at 33.9%. Jakob Poeltl, meanwhile, does not give defenses much reason to worry about him stretching the floor.
One possible answer is Ja’Kobe Walter. He shot 40.9% from 3 last season, the best mark among Toronto’s regular rotation players, though he did it on only 3.7 attempts per game. The Raptors could use more of those looks.
In Other News...
Raptors-Magic Suddenly Looks Very Different After New Injury News
What had looked like a straightforward Raptors-Magic matchup has quickly taken on a very different feel after the latest injury updates. Toronto will be without Kawhi Leonard for several weeks because of right knee inflammation, leaving a significant hole in the lineup and altering the way the team will have to approach the stretch ahead.
Orlando is dealing with its own setbacks, with Paolo Banchero expected out for 4-6 weeks because of a right high ankle sprain and Jalen Suggs sidelined for two games with a right knee bone bruise. Anthony Black, who had been listed as questionable, has been cleared to play, giving the Magic at least one more available body as both teams adjust to a suddenly thinner game plan. [Read more 🡒]
Magic Face An Early Test As Injuries Raise The Stakes
The Raptors head into their matchup with Orlando still sorting through the offensive issues that showed up in the loss to Minnesota, where Scottie Barnes had a particularly rough night. Toronto needs more from its young centerpiece, especially in terms of aggressiveness and playmaking, and this stretch against the Magic offers a chance to reset before the seasons early frustrations settle in.
Orlando comes in dealing with its own injury problems, with Paolo Banchero and Jalen Suggs both sidelined, which changes the look of the game even if the challenge remains real. For Toronto, that only adds to the importance of handling business against a depleted opponent, because the Raptors can use a clean offensive performance just as much as they need a result. [Read more 🡒]
Scottie Barnes Is Raising A Real Concern For The Raptors Offense
Scottie Barnes early-season shot profile has become a notable wrinkle for the Raptors, and not necessarily the kind that encourages confidence. Instead of living at the rim the way he has in past seasons, Barnes has been leaning more heavily into mid-range looks, a shift that has altered the balance of Torontos offense and taken some of the pressure off defenders to protect the paint.
Darko Rajakovic has said opposing coverages have played a role in that change, but the larger concern is whether Barnes can get back to being a consistent paint threat while still operating as a playmaker. He has already shown flashes in the opening stretch, then followed that with a rough shooting night against the Minnesota Timberwolves, which only adds to the sense that Toronto is still trying to figure out how best to use its most important young piece. [Read more 🡒]