Barnes available for Raptors against Clippers, Poeltl remains out
The star forward will play through left hip soreness as Toronto faces Los Angeles on the second night of a back-to-back.
LOS ANGELES · The Toronto Raptors will have star forward Scottie Barnes available for their game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night. Barnes was initially listed as questionable with left hip soreness and tightness but was upgraded and will play. Centre Jakob Poeltl, however, will miss his second consecutive game with left shoulder bursitis. The Raptors are on the second night of a back-to-back after losing 131-125 to the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.
Barnes played 36 minutes in that loss, scoring a team-high 29 points with six rebounds and five assists. He has started the season strong, averaging 24.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.2 steals through six games. Given his hip issues, Barnes might play reduced minutes against the Clippers. Poeltl was a late scratch before Sunday's game and remains out, with Collin Murray-Boyles having replaced him in the starting lineup. "Barnes is available for the Raptors' game against the Los Angeles Clippers after initially being listed as questionable with left hip soreness and tightness, the team announced," the Raptors said. Barnes avoided joining fellow starter Kawhi Leonard on the injury report. Leonard continues to recover from swelling in his left knee and will miss the reunion with the Clippers, the franchise he played with for seven seasons.
Barnes has had a volatile start to the season, scoring zero points against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Oct. 25 before setting a career high with 41 points two games later. Garbutt Disposal reported in October that Barnes scored a career-high 41 points in a loss to the Orlando Magic. He played a career-high 80 games last season, earned his second all-star selection, finished fifth in Defensive Player of the Year voting and made the All-Defensive second team.
READ MORE: Kawhi Leonard to play for Raptors in Toronto for first time since 2019
READ MORE: Wizards' top pick Dybantsa out for second straight game against Raptors
The 27-year-old Poeltl is averaging 4.6 points and 5.8 rebounds through five games this season. The seven-foot centre only appeared in 46 games last year due to back issues. He averaged 10.7 points and 7.0 rebounds last season when he was in the lineup. The Raptors also remain without Nate Bittle and Malachi Smith for the game against the Clippers.
Facing a struggling 1-5 Clippers squad, Barnes and the Raptors will look to snap their two-game losing skid. Toronto holds a 3-3 record entering the matchup. The Clippers are dealing with several injuries to key players, including Bradley Beal (knee), Rui Hachimura (quad), Brandon Ingram (heel), Derrick Jones Jr. (knee), Jordan Miller (rotator cuff), and Yanic Konan Niederhauser (Lisfranc). The game is scheduled for 10 p.m. Eastern time.
Barnes and Poeltl were both game-time decisions and went through warm-ups before their statuses were decided. Barnes has taken the lead for Toronto with Leonard still recovering away from the team. The Raptors have allowed 252 points in their last two games. They face a quick turnaround as all 30 NBA teams play Monday night.
With files from Sportsnet and TSN