When a player wins the NBA Rookie of the Year, their only goal is to remain as good the following season.
For Scottie Barnes of the Toronto Raptors, he’s actually set his sights a little bit higher.
Scottie Barnes over the last five games:
23.4 PPG
9.4 REB
5.0 AST
62.2 TS% pic.twitter.com/WUiWeAxODG— ENJ🏀Y (@EnjoyBBall) January 20, 2023
Over the last five games, Barnes has been putting up some solid and dominant numbers.
He has averaged 23.4 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 5 assists on a 62.2% true scoring percentage.
His team has been experiencing some tough times but Barnes has remained remarkably consistent throughout his second season.
The player is averaging 15.7 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 4.7 assists, which is a slight step-up from last season when he was putting up 15.3 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 3.5 assists.
Barnes is proving that he definitely earned the ROY trophy last season.
Meanwhile, his Raptors are still struggling.
The team, which ended last season as the 5th seed, is currently 11th in the East with a 20-26 record.
Their chances of making the playoffs are slipping away, which has many people wondering about the future of the franchise.
There has been a lot of speculation that Fred VanVleet or other team members could be traded away in the weeks and months ahead.
But it is very likely that Barnes will stick around, especially if he keeps playing like this.
What’s most likely is that Barnes remains and the future of the team is built around the young player.
After just two years, he is showing that he could certainly lead a franchise and could be the centerpiece of an exciting playoff contender.
The 2022-23 NBA season hasn’t been exactly what the Raptors wanted but Barnes has been having yet another great time on the court.
NEXT: Is It Time For The Raptors To Start Over?