Raptors' Fred VanVleet likely to play Friday vs. Hornets

Toronto Raptors guard Fred VanVleet Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

Raptors All-Star Fred VanVleet likely to play Friday vs. Hornets

By Victor Barbosa | Last updated 2/24/22

After making a franchise-record seven consecutive playoff appearances from 2014 to 2020 (including an NBA title in 2019), the Toronto Raptors regressed drastically last season with a 27-45 record. Kyle Lowry playing just 46 games and Norman Powell being traded in March didn't help, but it was still a surprising drop after the near-decade of consistency.

Lowry departed over the offseason, but a recent 9-2 stretch has brought Toronto to 32-25 overall coming out of the All-Star break and they currently stand in seventh place in the congested Eastern Conference. The Raptors will open their unofficial second-half slate at 7:00 p.m. ET on Friday against one of the teams closely behind them in the ninth-place Charlotte Hornets (29-31).

It looks like the team will have recently named first-time All-Star Fred VanVleet back in the lineup for the tilt after a brief one-game absence.

The raptors gave Fred VanVleet an extra day off. He is scheduled to be in Charlotte tonight and Nick Nurse thinks he is likely to play tomorrow against the Hornets.
— (((Eric Koreen))) (@ekoreen) February 24, 2022

VanVleet missed Toronto's final game before the midseason intermission last week with a knee injury, but he was healthy enough to play in the All-Star Game, finishing with six points, three rebounds and two assists on 2-for-4 shooting. All four of his field goal attempts were three-pointers.

The sixth-year guard out of Wichita State leads the Raptors in assists (7.0) and minutes per game (38.4), while ranking second in points per contest (21.6) behind Pascal Siakam (21.9). VanVleet also ranks second in steals per game at 1.6, trailing only Gary Trent Jr., who is averaging 1.9.

The 27-year-old's averages in points, assists, rebounds (4.6) and minutes are all career highs.

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