When looking back at the night when Scottie Barnes suffered his most recent injury, it appeared the face of the Raptors would be facing a long stretch of inactivity.
Rewind to Dec. 9 and a visit by the New York Knicks as the Raptors were wrapping up a five-game homestand when Barnes stepped on the foot of Karl-Anthony Towns in the third quarter, rolling his ankle.
Unable to put any weight on his right foot, Barnes was helped to the sidelines, then bounced on one leg through the courtside fans to the locker room and didn’t return.
Following Toronto’s loss, Barnes was seen in a walking boot.
Then came confirmation from the club that he had sustained a sprained ankle and would be re-evaluated in one week.
That didn’t prevent some from speculating that Barnes would miss two and perhaps even three weeks.
The good news, however, followed that Barnes’ injury was likely not going to be long-term. But given the nature of ankle sprains, nothing can be ruled out.
Barnes, meanwhile has been upgraded to ‘questionable’ for Thursday’s tip against the Brooklyn Nets, when the host Raptors will be favoured for the first time this season.
Odds-makers have pegged the 7-20 Raptors as four-point favourites against a 10-16 Nets team that just a few days ago traded Dennis Schroder — Barnes’ one-time teammate in Toronto — to the Golden State Warriors.
“It feels pretty solid,’’ proclaimed Barnes on Wednesday when he gathered with reporters following the team’s practice. “There’s a lot of good movement on it.”
Admittedly, Barnes feels he dodged a bullet.
In the immediate aftermath of his injury, Barnes said his foot hurt “real bad. After those first few days, everything began to calm down. I started to feel a lot better, I started to feel I could walk on it more.
“I’m happy it’s not as serious as I thought it would be.”
Assuming he does return as early as Thursday, it’s anyone’s guess how many minutes Barnes will be asked to play.
It goes without saying the Raptors are a better team with Barnes in their lineup. Without him and with the continued injury absence to Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett has been asked to serve as the team’s starting point guard. Logically, a Barnes return will allow Barrett to play off the ball where he’s more comfortable.
A potential Barnes return will take pressure off Barrett, who can serve as a playmaker, which he has shown he can do this season.
Barnes’ imminent return, however, coincides with the loss starting centre Jakob Poeltl.
Poeltl has been ruled out for Thursday’s game following a groin strain he suffered in the third quarter Monday night when he took a spill.
Following a few tense moments, Poeltl was able to regain his footing, but walked gingerly to the team’s locker room. He did not return, making the Raptors under-sized.
Poeltl, for all intents and purposes the only true big on Toronto’s roster, is having a career season, leading the NBA in offensive rebounds per game.
He has no true jump shot, can be exploited on defence when away from the basket, but there are many good things Poeltl brings to the table that can’t be measured with any stat.
Either way, the Raptors are pretty challenged to win any game against any opponent when one of Barnes and Poeltl aren’t available. When both are out, the outlook is quite grim.
When Barnes was unavailable, rookie Jonathan Mogbo was asked to start. Without Poeltl, there’s the possibility of Mogbo starting at centre.
Kelly Olynyk, who missed the season’s first 23 games because of a back injury, is also an option to start against the Nets. The stretch five/four has appeared in four games, but has been held to 15 minutes of floor time in each outing.
When he huddled with reporters Wednesday, Olynyk confided he still isn’t feeling great, a byproduct of getting back into the flow and the simple fact his back continues to bother him a bit.
Injuries have plagued the Raptors almost from the start. In the leadup to training camp, first-round pick Ja’Kobe Walter hurt his shoulder and missed the camp. In the team’s pre-season opener, Barrett hurt his shoulder.
Quickley has been hurt twice, as has Barnes while Bruce Brown (knee) has yet to play this season.
When the media was allowed inside the Raptors practice court, the veteran Brown could be seen heaving corner three-pointers.
The Raptors have been one of the most undermanned teams in the NBA this season, which does not excuse their sorry record, but it does speak to the team’s slim margin for error and how depleted and depth-challenged this season has become.
The team’s projected starting lineup has never played together.
And only three players — Mogbo, Davion Mitchell and Ochai Agbaji — have played in all 27 games.
Maybe the worm will eventually turn or maybe this injury-riddled season will continue.