Veteran wing Will Barton made a surprise move when he opted to sign with the Toronto Raptors over other playoff-contenders, including the Philadelphia 76ers. Yet, the 32-year-old made the decision with his playing time and the opportunity to re-establish his value in mind, according to TSN's Josh Lewenburg.
Barton, an 11-year veteran, has long been one of the more entertaining playmakers in the league. With a Kobe Bryant-like mindset when it comes to scoring and the ability to impact the game in multiple facets, it makes sense that he would grow disgruntled with his situation with the Washington Wizards.
Nonetheless, Barton's time with the Raptors hasn't gotten off to an ideal start, with him playing just four minutes in his Raptors debut after averaging 19.6 minutes per game with the Wizards this season.
Unfortunately, the prospects of Barton receiving much more playing time moving forward don't look too good. Established 3-and-D wing Gary Trent Jr. is in the rotation as the sixth man. The steadily progressing Precious Achiuwa plays an important role for the Raptors frontcourt, while Chris Boucher remains an intriguing presence in the second unit.
Furthermore, to give Barton more minutes would mean less scoring and playmaking opportunities for Fred VanVleet, Scottie Barnes, OG Anunoby, and Pascal Siakam. The Raptors may not want to take the ball of the hands of the aforementioned players, and nobody could truly blame them.
That said, with the Raptors shooting 33.5 percent from 3-point range (27th in the NBA) and averaging 112.6 points per game (23rd in the NBA), they do need help in areas where Barton excels. In fact, Barton just averaged 13.8 points per game in the 2022 NBA Playoffs while shooting 39.3 percent from 3-point range.
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