Toronto Just Locked In Their First Playoff Spot Since 2022 and Scottie Barnes Made It Look Easy
The Toronto Raptors are going to the playoffs. Finally. Scottie Barnes walked into Scotiabank Arena on Sunday and put on a masterclass: 18 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 assists in a triple-double performance that sent the Brooklyn Nets home in pieces, 136-101. This was the Raptors' ticket back to the postseason for the first time since 2022, and they're headed to Cleveland as the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference to face the fourth-seeded Cavaliers starting Saturday.
Barnes Was Unstoppable, and Toronto Brought the Heat
This was Barnes' third triple-double of the season and his ninth career, but the numbers don't fully capture what happened. RJ Barrett dropped 26 points. Brandon Ingram added 25. The Raptors offense was flowing, and the Nets, sitting at 20-62 and stuck in lottery territory, had zero answers. Ja'Kobe Walter and Jakob Poeltl each scored 11, while A.J. Lawson chipped in 10. Toronto's only scare came when Immanuel Quickley suffered a tight hamstring and didn't return for the second half, but by that point the game was already over. The Raptors finished 46-36 and punched their ticket.
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Across the league, the final week of the regular season was chaos. In Philly, Tyrese Maxey went off in the third quarter with 16 of his 21 points as the 76ers demolished Milwaukee 126-106. Doc Rivers, the 64-year-old Hall of Famer about to be inducted in August, may have coached his last game for the Bucks. The team is discussing moving him to the front office for next season. Quentin Grimes had four 3-pointers and scored 20 for Philadelphia. Joel Embiid sat out again recovering from appendectomy surgery.
Boston crushed Orlando 113-108 in both teams' season finales. The Celtics already had the No. 2 seed locked and rested eight players, including their top seven scorers. Baylor Scheierman went off for a career-high 30 points to lead the way. Miami beat Atlanta 143-117 with Bam Adebayo delivering 25 points and 10 rebounds. Houston finished strong, rolling past Memphis 132-101 to secure the fifth seed in the West. The Grizzlies had only seven players available and got a career-high 26 from Dariq Whitehead.
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