Scottie Barnes Ruled Out Monday With Groin Injury
Scottie Barnes (groin) ruled out Monday. - @UnderdogNBA
The are officially putting Scottie Barnes on the shelf for Monday night. According to Underdog NBA, the franchise cornerstone has been ruled out with a groin injury.
Groin injuries are the absolute worst kind of vague basketball update. You cannot just tape up an adductor and play through it unless your goal is to look like a guy slipping on ice for 48 minutes.
Barnes is the entire engine for this roster. When the starting small forward sits, the Raptors' offense usually devolves into a chaotic pickup game where nobody knows each other's names.
The guy just cannot catch a break lately. We have already seen him deal with a laundry list of ailments over the last year, from a right ankle injury that cost him weeks to catching a stray elbow to the face from Nikola Jokic.
This latest absence is an immediate red alert for anyone looking at the Monday slate. With Barnes out of the lineup, the usage rates for the rest of the starting five are going to spike dramatically.
That completely shifts the math on player props and team totals. Someone has to take those missing shots, even if the resulting offense makes you want to look away from the screen.
Soft tissue injuries in that area have a nasty habit of lingering longer than anyone wants. Watch the injury reports closely this week, because if Barnes misses extended time, is going to have to completely rewire how they play basketball.