Toronto Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic believes Scottie Barnes was just scratching the surface with his standout performance in the team's first-round playoff defeat to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
"For this stage of his career, I think he gave it all and I think he made a huge stride," Rajakovic told reporters after Sunday's Game 7 loss. "He got so much better in this playoff series. ... I sound like a broken record, but this is not the best version of Scottie that we're going to see.
"I know how hungry he is, how much he's going to work over the course of this summer, and what kind of player he's going to be next year. I think we're gonna see an even better Scottie next year."
Teammate RJ Barrett shared a similar sentiment.
"I think (Barnes) shut up a lot of talk, and that's good. That's a winning player," Barrett said postgame, per Joe Reedy of The Associated Press.
In his second postseason, Barnes averaged 24.1 points, 8.6 assists, 6.1 boards, 1.7 blocks, and 1.1 steals across seven appearances.
The 24-year-old joined some exclusive company in Game 6, becoming the eighth NBA player since 1997 to record at least 14 points and 10 assists in one postseason half. He finished with 14 dimes to tie Chris Childs' playoff franchise record.
Barnes' strong series followed his second career All-Star campaign and a fifth-place finish in Defensive Player of the Year voting.
