Barnes appears set to return as Raptors host Timberwolves on TSN
Published
Scottie Barnes could make his much-anticipated return to the lineup when the Toronto Raptors host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday night.
Barnes, 23, suffered a right orbital bone fracture in a 127-125 overtime loss to the Denver Nuggets on Oct. 28. The 2024 All-Star was cleared for contact Wednesday, and was a full participant at practice.
TSN’s Josh Lewenberg reports that Barnes is planning to wear protective goggles “as a precaution” for when he takes the floor in his return from injury.
The Florida State product is averaging 19.3 points, 7.8 rebounds, 6.0 assists, and 2.0 steals per game on 46 per cent shooting in four games played this season.
The Raptors are coming off of their third win of the season after defeating the Indiana Pacers 130-119 Monday night to snap a seven-game skid.
RJ Barrett, a Mississauga, Ont., native, scored a season-high 39 points in the winning effort, setting the franchise record for most points scored by a Canadian, while Jakob Poeltl added 30 points of his own to go along with 16 rebounds.
Poeltl, a former ninth-overall selection of the Raptors in 2016, has enjoyed a breakout start to the season that has seen the Austrian centre average 17.1 points and 11.9 rebound per game, both career-high marks.
“I’ve always prided myself on looking for opportunities,” said the seven-footer after Monday’s win. “Right now, especially with the type of rhythm I’m having, the shots feel good, the floaters feel good. I feel like I can be productive out there.”
Poeltl will be in tough Thursday against a Timberwolves squad buoyed by Rudy Gobert, a four-time Defensive Player of the Year.
Gobert, now in his seventh NBA season, played 39 minutes in the teams’ first meeting this season on Oct. 26, and recorded 15 points, 12 rebounds, and four blocks in a 112-101 victory for Minnesota.
The French international is joined by superstar Anthony Edwards in leading the Timberwolves, who hold an 8-6 record, good for seventh place in the Western Conference.
Edwards, a Second Team All-NBA selection last season, is averaging a career-high 28.1 points per game, and leads the NBA with 67 three-point field goals made.
In their last meeting, the 2020 first-overall pick scored a game-high 24 points, to go along with six rebounds and four assists in the winning effort.
Toronto will look to avoid being swept in the season series after dropping their last two matchups against the Timberwolves going back to last year.
The Raptors could be without Canadian big man Kelly Olynyk, who continues to nurse a back injury, while Bruce Brown, Bruno Fernando, Immanuel Quickley, and rookie Ja’Kobe Walter have all been ruled out for the contest.
Brown and Walter returned to full participants in practice alongside Barnes this week, but are not ready for game action.
Walter last played on Nov. 6, with the 2024 first-round pick suffering an AC joint sprain in his shoulder, while Brown has yet to play this season after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery in September.