Magic roll past depleted Raptors

TORONTO — Gary Trent Jr. has seen it all over his seven NBA seasons. Now the 25-year-old suddenly finds himself in a new role as a mentor on a young Toronto Raptors team.

Trent had a season-high 31 points after he matched a season-best seven threepointers as the undermanned Raptors fell to the Orlando Magic 113-103 on Friday. Trent is the longest tenured player active on a Toronto roster racked with injuries and other unavailable players.

“There’s no part of the game I think I haven’t touched, I haven’t been a part of,” said Trent, who noted that in his time with the Portland Trail Blazers and Raptors he has been pinned to the bench, a deep reserve, a regular in the rotation, and a starter. “So I feel like that just helps me know how to handle things and how to go about things.

“Again, just all those different situations I’ve been in my whole career.”

Toronto forward RJ Barrett of Mississauga, Ont., missed the game as he mourned the death of his younger brother. His absence added to the roster woes of a Raptors squad that was already missing all-star forward Scottie Barnes (broken hand) and centre Jakob Poeltl (torn hand ligament) from its starting lineup. Reserve centre Chris Boucher (partially torn MCL) of Montreal was also unavailable.

Between those absences and a series of trades that completely revamped the roster, Trent has become the veteran voice in the Raptors’ locker-room. Rookie Gradey Dick even consulted him on if he should get a particular tattoo.

“I just continue to work and control what I can control, try to be a good teammate,” said Trent. “Try to be a good person, a good player, go out there and just try to help to contribute toward winning as much as I can.”

Paolo Banchero finished with 17 points, nine rebounds and eight assists as Orlando (39-28) won for the seventh time in nine games.