RJ Barrett Makes Blunt Statement Ahead of Boston Celtics Game

RJ Barrett and the Toronto Raptors won 128-96 Friday night against the Memphis Grizzlies in FedEx Forum. After an embarrassing defeat to the Sacramento Kings just two days prior, the Raptors were able to take care of business against a team that was missing most of its entire rotation due to injuries. 

Barrett put on a show on the offensive end, as he has done for the past several games. Averaging 21.2 points per game on 53.2% shooting over his last 20 games (via StatMuse), the former Duke Blue Devil supplied 25 points, including four three-pointers in just 29 minutes. Offense has not been a strong suit for Toronto this season, but Barrett’s consistent scoring has been a great complement to two-time All-Star Brandon Ingram during this stretch. 

The former No. 3 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft was not shy about his frustration after losing to the 15th seed in the Western Conference on Wednesday. He exclaimed that everyone, including himself, needed to step up, and they did so in a big way in Tennessee. There is no reason for the Raptors to be in close games with teams of this caliber this late into the season, and dominating every team category while leading for 97% of the game last night proves that point. 

When speaking with Sportsnet’s Danielle Machaud on the court postgame, Barrett discussed the mentality of the team going into the rest of the regular season, especially in rough officiating games like last night. 

“We can’t complain about calls, we just gotta try and continue to play our game and work our way around it,” said Barrett. “We can beat anybody. When we play Raptors basketball, we can beat anybody.” 

This answer came after a question regarding Toronto’s next matchup on Easter Sunday against the Boston Celtics. Regardless of who they play to end the regular season, the Raptors need to win as many games as they can to climb their way out of the Play-In Tournament. Playing the 2024 NBA Champions, who currently sit as the second seed in the Eastern Conference, will be another test that the Raptors need going into the postseason. 

There are just five games left in the regular season for Toronto, and only one game will come against a team not competing in the postseason. While they sit in a tie for the sixth seed with the Philadelphia 76ers, the Raptors have important games to win if they want to avoid the red-hot Charlotte Hornets in a single-game competition for the seventh seed in the playoffs.