Preface
There is such a player in the NBA this season, his annual salary is $8 million, but the data has reached the level second only to the two-time MVP letter brother and one-time MVP Embiid, his team once refused to put him in the trade in the negotiations to get Durant, and listed him as "not for sale", this player is Scottie Barnes, and let's go into his story together.
Five-star high school students in Florida can't even sit in the starting position when they get to college?
Scottie Barnes grew up in Florida, USA, and from a very young age, he held basketball everywhere, and when he began to play on the field court, sometimes he would play with a group of people who were twenty or thirty years older than him, and learned from them Xi mature ways to deal with various situations in the game, and whichever side loses must be replaced by the next group, such wild ball rules make Scottie Barnes's competitive spirit slowly cultivated.
After Xi playing against adults and then playing with players of the same age, Scottie Barnes became more comfortable, in the sophomore season, he helped the school team achieve a luxurious record of 36 wins and 2 losses, and won the first 5A state championship in school history, the third season of high school consecutive championships, the senior season transferred to Montverde Academy, this is the high school where Embiid once stayed, in the Gauss season, Scottie Barnes can average 11.6 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game, helping the team to a 25-game winning record.
Scottie Barnes was also drafted to compete in international competitions, representing the U.S. men's basketball team at the U16 Men's Basketball World Cup in 2017, scoring a game-high 20 points and scoring six steals in the semifinals against Argentina, and eventually helping the team win the gold medal, and the 2018 U17 Men's Basketball World Cup.
When it came time to decide which college to go to, Scottie Barnes was rated as a five-star high school student by several authoritative media outlets, including ESPN, and he showed his potential to be an all-round star.
But when Scottie Barnes chose to go to Florida State University, he probably didn't expect that he would not even be able to sit in the starting position, in his freshman season, Scottie Barnes played in a total of 24 games, only 7 starts, such a situation will not be too easy for many players who have been stars since childhood, and even failed to continue their previous highlights, will Scottie Barnes be different?
Scottie Barn has accepted the change of role, he is happy to step up from the bench to help the team, he is always energetic, he handed over an average of 10.3 points, 4 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.5 sign-ins per game to help the team reach the NCAA, and all the way to the semifinals, Scottie Barnes was selected as the league's best rookie, best sixth man, and was named to the ACC league All-NBA team, and entered the NBA draft at the end of the season.
He is reminiscent of another "Scottie"
In 2021, Scottie Barnes unexpectedly heard his name with the fourth pick in the first round of the NBA Draft, and it was rumored that the Raptors, who held the No. 4 pick in the first round, would most likely choose Suggs, but it seems that they prefer Scottie Barnes and favor the young man who is considered to be a "strong version" of Batum.
In his rookie season, Scottie Barnes surprised the Raptors too much, and Scottie Barnes could have a considerable impact on the game on both offensive and defensive ends.
Excellent size and confrontation ability have allowed Scottie Barnes to basically adapt to the rhythm of the NBA when he first entered the league, can finish strongly under the basket against the defense, has good court vision and ball ability, and his creativity is eye-catching, reminiscent of another "Scottie", and everyone may be more familiar with his surname - Pippen.
Coincidentally, Batum, one of Scottie Barnes' draft templates, also has a nickname called "French Pippen."
Scottie Barnes' average data in the regular season in his rookie season finally stopped at 15.3 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.1 steals, standing out among the 2021 NBA rookies and becoming the winner of the best rookie award in the NBA draft year with Cunningham, Mobley, Jalen Green, Suggs, Franz Wagner and other high-quality players, and is considered the "draft year".
In the second season of his career, Scottie Barnes seems to have stagnated his growth, his average points per game have not risen, his shooting percentage and three-point shooting rate have declined, and his average turnovers have risen.
The second-year rookie makes the Raptors feel more "fragrant" than Durant, and the "King of the North" has a prototype
The outside world questioned Scottie Barnes loudly, but the Raptors made a surprising decision. In the 2022-23 season, the Nets were busy trading Durant, and "where did Durant go" was a hot topic almost throughout the offseason to the regular season, and many American media people, including Woj, exposed the news that the Raptors were interested in Durant, NBA reporter Michael Scotto reported that if the Raptors were willing to send Scottie Barnes, the Nets would seriously consider making a deal with the Raptors for Durant.
In a follow-up report, Michael Scotto said that the Raptors insisted on keeping Scottie Barnes on the lineup. It's equivalent to treating Scottie Barnes as a "not for sale", even if he can trade for Durant and not put him in the trade. It's clear how much the Raptors value Scottie Barnes, but is he worth it for the Raptors?
Let's take a look at Scottie Barnes's performance in the third season of his career, he has almost become an "all-around warrior" player, almost everywhere in the game, he makes full use of his long arms and strength, and becomes a "defensive iron gate", and on the offensive end, Scottie Barnes's shooting touch can be said to be getting better than the previous season, better adapting to the rhythm and intensity of the NBA game, and organizing tandems well.
As a result, fans can see in the game that Scottie Barnes can tear apart the opponent's defense by breaking through with the ball, can equalize the score at a critical moment with a three-point retreat, can accurately find teammates in the open position, rebound and grab reliable, single defense, and help defense, has a good ability to predict the opponent's passing route, and can also take care of the task of protecting the frame.
In the first 27 regular season games of the 2023-24 season, Scottie Barnes averaged 20.6 points, 9.2 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocks per game, what level of data is this? Defensive Team of the Year.
Scottie Barnes's rapid growth can be said to let fans see that the new "King of the North" after DeRozan and Leonard such as the Raptors has taken shape, and he may be the forward hope of the American men's basketball team.