Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes will miss at least three weeks after he suffered a right orbital fracture during Monday night’s 127-125 overtime loss to the Denver Nuggets, the team announced Wednesday.
Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes exited Monday’s game after Nikola Jokic elbowed him in the right eye
Barnes, 23, was forced to leave Monday’s game in the final minute of the fourth quarter after he was elbowed in the right eye by Nikola Jokic, who was going for a rebound.
The Florida State product ended his night with 21 points, 12 rebounds, and nine assists in 35 minutes of action. The Raptors said Barnes would be reevaluated in three weeks.
Scottie Barnes has been diagnosed with a right orbital fracture. He’ll miss at least 3 weeks after receiving a cheap shot from jokic pic.twitter.com/fGj89eAf8x
— Christopher Graf (@ChrisGraf21) October 30, 2024
Toronto also added that “his condition will be updated as appropriate.”
Barnes, who was selected fourth overall by Toronto in the 2021 NBA draft, is averaging 19.3 points, 7.8 rebounds, 6.0 assists, and 2.0 steals through four games this season.
Barnes signed a five-year deal with the Raptors in the offseason worth about $225 million
Furthermore, Barnes received his first All-Star selection last season after averaging a career-high 19.9 points per game. He also averaged career bests of 8.2 rebounds, 6.1 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.5 blocks in 60 games.
During the offseason, Barnes signed a contract extension that could reach around $270 million if he meets supermax criteria. The West Palm Beach native is making about $10 million this season, the last of his rookie deal.
Through 215 career NBA regular season games (214 starts), Barnes has averaged 16.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 1.1 steals, and 1.0 block per contest.
Plus, he’s shooting 47.3% from the field, 30.9% from 3-point range, and 76.3% at the free throw line.
Toronto will rely on RJ Barrett, Davion Mitchell to carry the offensive load
Without Barnes in the lineup, the Raptors will turn to RJ Barrett and Davion Mitchell to enhance shot selection. However, Barrett also just returned from an AC joint sprain.
Toronto could ask for more scoring production from Grady Dick as well. Veteran guard Bruce Brown and third-year guard Ochai Agbaji are other available options in the rotation.
The Raptors are 1-3 to start the season and will soon be tasked with a challenging road trip that starts next week.
Their next road games include matchups with Charlotte, Denver, Sacramento, both Los Angeles teams, and Milwaukee. The Raptors also host the Lakers on Friday and Kings on Saturday.
