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Nurse: Scottie Barnes, Gary Trent, Thaddeus Young Likely out for Raptors vs. 76ers
April 17, 2022
The Philadelphia 76ers hammered the Toronto Raptors 131-111 in Game 1 of their first-round playoff matchup on Saturday. Monday's Game 2 might not be much better.
Pulling even in the series is already looking like a tall task after head coach Nick Nurse told reporters Sunday that the trio of Scottie Barnes, Gary Trent Jr. and Thaddeus Young is unlikely to play in Game 2.
"I mean, listen, it doesn't look good for any of those guys," he said. "They're all going to be listed as probably doubtful, so it doesn't look good for any of them. We'll evaluate them as we go and see where we end up."
Barnes, 20, suffered a sprained ankle after Philadelphia's Joel Embiid inadvertently stepped on his foot during the fourth quarter.
The star rookie was one of the bright spots for Toronto on a tough night, putting up 15 points, 10 boards and eight assists before the injury. His loss would be huge for the Raptors on both ends.
Young, 33, sprained his thumb in the second quarter and was unable to return. His loss would cost the Raptors two of their switchable, versatile forwards, as well as a key bench player.
Trent, 23, has been dealing with a non-COVID illness for the last week, per Nurse, which likely contributed to his poor Game 1 showing (nine points on 2-of-11 shooting).
He was one of the team's most effective three-point shooters (38.3 percent) and scorers (18.3 PPG) during the regular season. Without Barnes and Trent in the starting lineup, Toronto will have to replace the 33.6 points per game the pair combined to average.
But Nurse believes the Raptors are up to the task in Game 2.
"It's not unlike a lot of regular-season situations this year," he said. You're going in with a game plan trying to figure out what it looks like with a certain group of guys and how it may change with another group guys, and what you're capable of doing. We're just going to have to be a little fluid with what we're doing."
If not, the Raptors will be heading back to Toronto facing a 2-0 series deficit.