TORONTO – Chants of “Scotty! Scotty! Scotty!” rained down on Scotiabank Arena on Saturday when Toronto Raptors striker Scotty Barnes was named NBA Rookie of the Year.
The news came just as Barnes was allowed to play in Game 4 of the Raptors playoff series against the Philadelphia 76ers. He missed two games in the ankle sprain series as Toronto fell behind 3-0 in the best of seven.
A video of the tribute showed former Raptors great Vince Carter making a statement to Barnes and his Toronto teammates after their morning shooting.
“We are incredibly proud of Scotty and we are thrilled and grateful that his hard work has been recognized with this honor,” Raptors Vice President and President Masai Ujiri said in a statement. “What you see on the court is exactly who Scotty is: enthusiastic, happy, athletic, skilled and a winner.
“We – and our fans – loved to see him develop this season and we can’t wait to see what the future holds.
Barnes, No. 4 in the 2021 draft, became the third Raptor to win rookie medals after Damon Staudamier (1996) and Carter (1999).
Stoudamire was also featured in a video tribute to Scotiabank Arena. Barnes stood on the main court during the pre-match ceremony and Ujiri presented him with the rookie of the year trophy to a standing ovation from Toronto fans.
Barnes stepped forward and raised the prize above his head to an explosion of applause from the arena, stirring the crowd before the critical match.
Raptors head coach Nick Nurse wasn’t even sure Barnes would play against the Sixers on Saturday.
“We are still waiting. He is upstairs at the moment and is doing a fitness test to see how he is doing, “Sister said at a pre-match press conference. “He’s really involved in the training parts. We’ll see soon.”
The 20-year-old Barnes averaged 15.3 points and 7.5 rebounds in 49.2% of shots in his first season with the Raptors. He averaged 35.4 minutes per game, first among all recruits and was the only rookie to top the top five in points, rebounds, assists, stolen thefts and blockades.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on April 23, 2022.
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