“You see a very happy man in front of you. » RJ Barrett is not necessarily the most talkative player in the NBA, almost deadpan. The Raptors winger nevertheless wanted to express his joy without showing it very widely. The Canadian, however, had reason to be satisfied on Monday after his team's success against Indiana, to end a series of seven losses. Toronto owes this success in large part to its defector from last season, involved as much by choice as by necessity in a new role, but who performed well in it.
The extremely efficient player from his half-season in Canada in 2024 (55.2% shooting!) but also during the Olympics has come down from his cloud.
But it's because he now has full powers, at least, in the absence of Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley, expected to be the two main ball carriers this season. The misfortune of some brings happiness to RJ Barrett, informal leader, who displays a real aptitude for creation. “It’s always been in me” he assured at a press conference. “I just have the opportunity to show it more here. »
More assists than Steph Curry or Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
With an average of 6.5 assists since the start of the season, RJ Barrett has more than doubled his career average. Over the last three games, the jump is even more striking, with a career record of 15 assists against Boston at the heart of a triple-double and a role of first creator fully assumed: 9 assists for only 2.3 lost balls. His connection with Jakob Poeltl in the form of his life recently is obvious, like the first basket of the match on Monday, a dunk from the Austrian pivot on a spectacular pass from his teammate. “He makes good screens, and he goes well towards the rim, so he finds himself free” laughs RJ Barrett.
RJ Barrett does not just compile the statistics, he also shows himself to be a true leader of the team, who fully contributes to the success of his team. This is not obvious when looking at the rankings with a third victory for 12 defeats. But no other team has played so many teams with a positive record since the start of the season, for a record necessarily little to the advantage of the Canadian franchise, particularly at the end of the match (1-6 in matches decided by less than five points difference).
In this difficult period, Monday's victory against the Pacers of their former leader Pascal Siakam gives comfort to RJ Barrett and his teammates. “It feels so good to win, we went for that one” he repeated. A success to which he is anything but a stranger, with 15 points in the last quarter, while Indiana had reduced the gap from 22 points to only seven at the start of the period.
Best Canadian scorer in a game in Raptors history
During the Raptors' last two games against the Pistons and the Celtics, the former Knick had already produced big performances, with even more importantly a good impact on his team with positive +/- ratios despite the setbacks. All with 28.7 points at 43.9% but above all 41.2% from afar and 8.3 rebounds in addition to his 9 caviars.
As a bonus, RJ Barrett got himself a line in the Raptors history books on Monday. With his 39 points, he became the Canadian player with the highest total of points in a game in the annals of the franchise.
“That’s cool, I didn’t know!” » he rejoiced. “It especially says a lot about our team. I have often been open, thanks to our screens. We just have to trust the work we do every day, the coaches have confidence to put the ball in my hands. »
And it should last at least a few more days, since Immanuel Quickley and Scottie Barnes are only expected to be re-evaluated in the coming days regarding their injuries.
