Raptors Interested in Extending Scottie Barnes – Basketball Insiders

Scottie Barnes is one of the brightest, young stars the NBA has right now, and the future is bright for the former Rookie of the Year. His team, the Toronto Raptors, are aware of this fact and are interested in expanding their guard/small forwards. The Raptors are expected to trade Bruce Brown this offseason which should open up room for the team to offer Barnes a potential contract. With Toronto rebuilding, it seems they already have plans to build around Scottie Barnes for the future.

Toronto Raptors Interested in Signing Scottie Barnes to Contract Extension

Scottie Barnes Career So Far

Barnes has already made a solid impact on the NBA. He was Rookie of the Year and made his first All-Star Team this season. Barnes is already considered one of the better “bucket shooters,” in just his third season in the NBA. This year, he averaged a career-high 19.9 points, 1.5 blocks, 1.3 steals, 8.2 rebounds, and a career-best 6.1 assists per game. The former Florida State product has 16.6 career points, 7.4 total rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game.

He has become a versatile player who can play in many positions and has shown improvement in the defensive front. It’s a feature the Raptors could use since they traded OG Anunoby to the New York Knicks in the middle of the season. As Scottie Barnes enters his fourth season in the league, his ceiling is very high. The Raptors are smart to lock him up long term now when they could get him on a team friendly deal. As of now, the Raptors star is expected to play with a team option of 10.1 million this coming season. After that, he will be a restricted free agent.

Can the Raptors Build Around a New Sense of the Future?

Toronto may be in a rebuilding phase right now, but they have direction. Barnes is a player they want to build for the future and have a lottery pick in this year’s NBA Draft (eighth overall). Toronto has some talented young players on their roster who hope to eventually develop into a solid core with the likes of Gradey Dick, Chris Boucher, and Jordan Nwora just to name a few young players. The Toronto Raptors are looking to rebuild by going with a youth organization. Looking to sign their young star, Scottie Barnes, is a step in the right direction for the organization.