The Toronto Raptors won’t have the services of Scottie Barnes for the foreseeable future. In the aftermath of the team’s 120-105 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Friday night, the team announced that the former Rookie of the Year and the up-and-coming face of their franchise is out indefinitely after suffering a fracture in his left hand.
Raptors say Scottie Barnes has sustained a fracture to the third metacarpal bone of his left hand and is out indefinitely.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 2, 2024
The injury occurred late in the second quarter of the game. Barnes attempted to contest a layup by Jonathan Kuminga, but as he was getting ready to jump, his left hand caught the leg of his teammate, Immanuel Quickley. He was in clear pain after the play, and following a Gary Trent make on the next possession, Barnes took a personal foul and made his way into the back.
Scary stuff for Raptors fans. Scottie Barnes smacks his hand against the rim and is in so much pain he can't even catch the pass. He then immediately sprints to the locker room after intentionally fouling to get out of the game. pic.twitter.com/anZLlKn231
— Hot Hand Theory (@HotHandTheory) March 2, 2024
While Toronto sits in 12th place in the Eastern Conference and are 4.5 games back of a berth in a Play-In Tournament, losing Barnes is absolutely brutal, as the team entered Friday night’s game with three wins in its previous four games. Getting to use the final month and a half as a chance for Barnes and his teammates to continue to build up chemistry would have been incredibly valuable, and while we’ll have to see if he’s able to return this year, those efforts took a hit on Friday night.
Entering Friday night’s game, Barnes — who made his first All-Star team this season — averaged 20 points, 8.3 rebounds, 6.1 assists, 1.5 blocks, and 1.3 steals in 35.2 minutes per game.
