Should Scottie Barnes have made All-NBA?

Samson Folk & Mac Cunningham talk about the hottest topic in Raptors land.

From my piece:

“What worked for Barnes:

When it comes to problem solving in the NBA Playoffs, the mid-range is an extremely important release valve. For one, it’s the part of the floor that teams funnel you to when they get beat as they know the numbers and have a reasonable expectation of a loss in points per possession over time. For two, it’s because a lot of players who get funneled middle aren’t great playmakers, and their inability to map the floor out, track their teammates, and playmake them into advantages is typically a true sore spot and stopping point offensively. Anthony Edwards has been stuck in this development for years, for example. Barnes, for all of the things that he doesn’t do relative to other star initiators – he has no problem reading the floor and solving defenses with his big ol’ basketball brain.

Barnes shot 53-percent in the short mid-range against the Cavaliers, a big healthy chunk of innings eating and counter punching against a team that was stuffing the paint with a big front court. Why do I say counter punch? Well, because Barnes’ mid-range shot making, unlike many others, isn’t his most dangerous pursuit from the middle of the floor. In the playoffs, Barnes’ 5.5 rim assists per 100 possessions was the 100th percentile. His 11.1 assist to touch ratio on drives was the highest among high volume drivers in the playoffs. There is nothing more valuable than a shot at the rim, and Barnes was delivering those looks in a greater fashion than any of his peers. Nothing short of wizardry.

The maturation process of Barnes’ game as he’s slowly added skills to his repertoire has advanced enough for him to wield and weaponize his truly transcendent passing acumen against his opponents. So, when it came time, Barnes more than doubled his driving frequency from regular season to playoffs, launched himself in to the top 6 in driving volume in the NBA, and crushed defenses with it.

It’s true that Barnes shot 38-percent on prove me triples against the Cavs, and he of course is a DPOY level talent defensively (but we knew that). However, the thing that changed in the playoffs was the volume and next level decision making as an offensive hub. Creating for others, and for himself (his 63% unassisted buckets were the most for a player categorized as a forward in the playoffs).”