The last thing the Toronto Raptors need in the middle of their hunt for a spot in the play-in tournament is a prolonged absence from one of their most crucial players in second-year forward Scottie Barnes. Barnes had to exit the Raptors' Sunday night contest against the Milwaukee Bucks after suffering a wrist injury that limited him to only 13 minutes of game time. The good news was that the X-rays on his wrist came out negative, so, at the very least, that rules out any bone fractures/problems.

Even then, Barnes' availability for the Raptors' next contest against the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night remains up in the air. But the Raptors should take solace in the fact that the MRI on the 21-year old's injured wrist came back clean and that he remains day-to-day, according to Josh Lewenberg of TSN.

As much as that news should provide comfort for the Raptors brass, Scottie Barnes' wrist reportedly remains sore, which forced him to miss their Tuesday practice.

Barnes hasn't had the second-year breakout most fans hoped he would have after a promising rookie campaign ended with him taking home Rookie of the Year honors. Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam remain very much in control of the Raptors' offense, relegating Barnes to a more complementary role on that end of the court.

Nevertheless, Scottie Barnes remains a crucial part in the Raptors' most productive five-man lineup. The lineup of Barnes, VanVleet, Siakam, OG Anunoby, and trade deadline addition Jakob Poeltl has put up a +12.3 net rating in 189 minutes together.

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During Barnes' absence in the Bucks game, the Raptors called upon Gary Trent Jr. to fill in his minutes. Trent is a much more reliable floor spacer than Barnes; however, despite Trent's penchant for being an annoying passing lane pest, his overall defensive impact pales in comparison to that of Barnes'.

Trent should continue logging a heavier workload if Barnes needs to miss time due to his injury. This should then free up more minutes for the likes of Will Barton, Chris Boucher, and Precious Achiuwa, and perhaps even Malachi Flynn or Thaddeus Young if head coach Nick Nurse feels generous with his minutes distribution.