Raptors’ 5-man weapon hiding in plain sight is starting to turn heads

The Toronto Raptors are currently under .500. They seem to still be trying to figure things out that will work for the team in the long run in the 2022-23 NBA season, but if there's one the Raptors know is benefiting the team, it's their five-man lineup consisting of Scottie Barnes, Gary Trent Jr., O.G. Anunoby, Pascal Siakam, and Christian Koloko — the same starting unit they rolled out when they beat the Phoenix Suns at home last Friday to prevent a three-game losing skid (via Keerthika Uthayakumar of TSN).

The 5-man unit of Scottie Barnes, Gary Trent Jr., O.G. Anunoby, Pascal Siakam & Christian Koloko have a 25.9 net rating, a team-best. Their 65 minutes together is the 3rd most of any Raptors' 5-man lineup this season. They're 3-1 in 4 starts.

That lineup has appeared in only seven games this season but among five-man Raptors units this season with at least 50 minutes played together, the aforementioned group has the best offensive rating (127.3) and defensive rating (101.4), easily besting the five-man combination most used by Toronto (P. Siakam – F. VanVleet – O. Anunoby – G. Trent Jr. – S. Barnes), per NBA.com.

As successful as that configuration has been so far for the Raptors, they're unlikely to stick with it once Fred VanVleet returns from injury. His eventual comeback would likely end up with Koloko moving back to his bench role and Siakam assuming the starting center slot and Trent shifting to his natural shooting guard position.

The Raptors are just 16-20 after 36 games in the season. They will play the Indiana Pacers on the road this Monday.