Barrett, Quickley training for tomorrow
The first time it was a bit eye-catching, the second time it was notable. And when it happened a third, fourth and fifth time, you could see a grand Raptors plan in its infancy.
It’s unclear exactly how many times RJ Barrett has finished a drive with his right hand on the right side of the rim in his last three of four games but it’s more than we saw in the month prior.
Barrett is a great and forceful driver, the best on the Raptors roster. But he’s also known as a great and dominant left-handed finisher.
In that regard, there is no doubt Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic sees a bit of Manu Ginobili, another southpaw, in Barrett. Everyone in any arena, including the guys who were guarding him, knew Ginobili wanted to go left and, still, he got to his left time and time again.
It’s been the same with Barrett, except now we’re seeing him on the other side of the rim far more frequently.
How? Hard work and practice and the insistence of Rajakovic and his staff that Barrett diversify a bit because it can be a major offensive weapon for the still-young wing.
Rajakovic told me this week he plans to make Barrett live “a righthanded” week in his workouts later this summer. Every minute he’s in a gym that week he’ll dribble, drive and attack as a righty so he can be a more complete offensive player.
The Raptors’ staff has also been drilling down on specific aspects of Immanuel Quickley’s offensive game, and that will continue on the court and in the weight room over the summer.
The Raptors want Quickley to be more aggressive getting to the rim and more physically able to take the hits. It’s in the early stages but it’s working well; Quickley has taken 33 free throws in his last three games, making 30.
“Me and (assistant coach) Pat Delaney … (are) just watching stuff,” he said this week. “Because the rules are changing a little bit, you’re not getting as many free throws (and we’re) just seeing what other guys are getting, what other calls guys are getting, and seeing where you can be effective in that way.
“Getting to the line is one of my strengths, I feel like, so just trying to build on that.”
About those first-round picks …
The Raptors with no first-round draft picks in June? It could happen.
The pick they are owed from Indiana, the one they got in the Pascal Siakam deal, is protected one through three, a fact glossed over when the Pacers were rolling back in January.
If Indiana falls out of sixth and into the play-in series, and if the Pacers are eliminated in the play-in and go into the lottery, how about this scenario: The Pacers vault from 13th or 14th in the lottery to first, second or third, knock the Raptors out of No. 6, resulting in Toronto’s choice having to go to San Antonio as part of the Jakob Poeltl trade.
It’s probably not going to happen, right? Just like Scottie Barnes and Poeltl suffering season-ending finger injuries in back-to-back games.