Raptors
Scottie Barnes kept getting to his spots Friday. The Raptors kept giving him the ball. When a guy is having that kind of night, it makes sense.
Barnes scored a career-high 41 points in the 121-114 loss to the Magic, adding five rebounds and five assists. As Josh Elijah Nitsopoulos of Raptors On SI writes, Barnes became Toronto’s answer whenever the offense stalled, working smaller defenders in the post and finding his midrange jumper.
The help wasn’t consistent enough. RJ Barrett struggled with his shot and committed costly turnovers, while Orlando made 18 of 34 threes.
Jakob Poeltl did give Toronto something encouraging. After picking up two quick fouls, he returned later in the first quarter and found a rhythm, finishing with 12 points and 11 rebounds for his first double-double of the season.
Toronto outscored Orlando by eight with Poeltl on the floor. The Raptors visit the Lakers on Sunday.
Pacers
Andrew Nembhard is doing plenty to keep the Pacers’ offense moving. Unfortunately for Indiana, there’s another end of the floor.
Nembhard followed Wednesday’s 18-point, 14-assist performance with 22 points and nine assists in Friday’s 145-125 loss to the Heat. He made five of eight threes, but Miami shot nearly 60 percent overall.
As Tyler Smith of Pacers On SI notes, Nembhard’s increased offensive workload also means spending energy Indiana ordinarily needs him to devote to defending the opponent’s best scorer.
The options are limited. Tyrese Haliburton and T.J. McConnell remain sidelined, Ivica Zubac missed his third straight game, and Obi Toppin joined the injury list with back spasms.
The Pacers had 11 available players for their fourth game in six days across three cities. They started well enough, but Miami took control over the final three quarters and handed Indiana its fourth loss.
Hornets
The Hornets were getting open shots Friday. Making them was another matter entirely.
Charlotte shot 30 percent from the field in a 95-79 loss to the Wizards, falling to 3-3. Schuyler Callihan of Hornets On SI writes that the misses included plenty of clean looks, with the Hornets following a 6-of-23 first half from deep by going 3-of-17 in the third quarter.
Brandon Miller finished with 19 points on 7-of-24 shooting, including 3-of-13 on threes. Naz Reid had 12 points and 11 rebounds in his first appearance since Charles Lee benched him for the second half against Detroit.
Charlotte also struggled to defend without fouling. Anthony Davis attempted eight of Washington’s 19 first-half free throws and finished with 25 points and 13 rebounds.
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