Toronto Raptors Media Availability | March 4, 2024

Toronto Raptors Media Availability | March 4, 2024

RJ obviously uh there have been some injuries on this team in the past week or so uh what kind of mindset you have to have as a team going forward and closing up the season strong kind of you know uh next man up you know we’re that’s why

We’re a team you know it’s not just one guy um On Any Given night even when we are healthy so need our whole team and we had a good practice today and just going to you know see what our our team looks like moving forward how do things

Change for you with Scotty out of the line all more aggressive I feel like I mean even yesterday you saw I kind of did the same stuff I normally do um it’s more about reading the game you know I feel like with with Scotty out there’s going to be

More attention on quick and eye and it’s just about making you know the right plays and winning plays to to help the team win is it naturally an opportunity for you to work on your play making since that you can expect that attention come a little more no absolutely uh just

Working on playmaking working on uh even you know guarding different positions and just you know taking my my game kind of to the next level and just being being an allaround player even more I mean what do you make ofs now what do you make of the role that

You’ve had and and you know the the rise in efficiency you’ve been able to demonstrate like what’s what’s uh say that again the rise and efficiency you’ve been able to demonstrate what’s uh what’s why has that been working for you no just you know the team the system

That we have um we’re very unselfish we’re moving cutting getting in transition everybody’s running you know this fits my game very well um and I’m thankful that I had the opportunity to kind of show that here and then and also like some of the passing you’ve made

Like on the interior and stuff like that is is that almost like contagious when you know the ball’s coming it’s easy to give it up that kind of stuff and just yeah man it’s way it’s way easier to play like that when you know that you know when it’s your turn that you’re

Going to get you know the that pass pass as well so just our team as a whole we we play very well together we we move the ball and um yeah it’s very fun to play here Rie what do you remember from the game against the Pelicans and how

Far do you kind of feel like your team has come since that game I didn’t play did I watch um that was a you know that was a tough game um those happened in the course of the season but it definitely was not a great feeling you know we

Definitely had some strong conversations after that one and I think we I think we’ve been very competitive you know in these games since then they have Brandon Zion Zion across the front Court that’s a lot of size you want to you want to put that faal cors yeah

No I mean of course they’re you know they’re very talented they have you know two Allstars over there I mean and then obviously CJ McCullum as well so so they they have a lot of good pieces um you know is JB playing JB playing right yeah like they got you know they obviously

Have a really good team they’re you know playoff team so just got to be ready for them uh you know but we think we can beat anybody how does it feel you said you’re getting extra attention or whatever with Scotty missing from the defense like what does that feel like for

You just you know extra attention on drives I mean people already pay attention when I drive but you know even more now so I just got to you know make sure that I’m continuing to make the right reads d uh I’m curious do you have an update on Yak or Scotty and their

Injury conditions uh no update at this point uh still going through further uh investigation and collecting information at this point what if you seen from Mo as a member of the 905 this season um athletic wing for man uh that can cover multiple positions very active hands very very live body good rim

Protector and somebody who who really embraced our culture and he he really improved as as the season uh was was progressing so we’re really exciting exciting to to have him with us and to continue his development only you have oner you have four guys on two deals right

Now it’s uh in the motion right now I do not have updates at this point but it’s going to be uh very soon we’re going to have a clear uh all the paperwork and everything what’s going on when you look at RJ’s in particular efficiency had

What do you think explains that I mean he’s 60% shooting percenter clearly aici I mean it’s uh it’s a multiple things I think multiple factors that go into it I think first of all I think he’s playing efficiently he’s not forcing things uh he’s uh getting to the

Rim quite a bit but at the same time uh his playmaking is is constantly getting better and improving it’s it’s that fine balance when he needs to be aggressive uh to look to score and then to understand when defense is putting two or three players on him and then being

Able to make this to find good decisions and find his teammates you know he had five assists last night he had couple of turnovers we need to convert those turnovers into better better reads but I think that uh he’s uh you know he’s at typical just being Lefty and he’s very

Skilled of getting to the rim uh he’s also uh good finishing of one foot of of two feet as well and uh I think that there is so much more to to upgrade in his game uh and uh pick a all putting him in some actions that he can play

Make and stuff like that you coach him or encourage him a little bit to look is getting off the ball sooner or anything like that our first conversation and our last conversation it’s everyday conversation for him I really think there is something very very special with with his playmaking uh

His uh big Wing uh that he can touch the paint on on on the well whatever he wants it’s just like finding like good reads when when he can find his teammates and uh you know he’s playing with wing but he’s actually point guard um obviously the an have a pretty

Uh impressive front court and you’re have some depth issues now with yako how do you combat sort of the their bigs uh heading into the next game next men up and team effort and uh you know you got we got to be bring fight to them you

Know we got to be very competitive from the start of the game uh you know they have very good front court but they have uh also Allstar level level guards and CJ McCollum and Brenda mgram like those guys they can score 30 On Any Given night so uh we’ll need everybody to step

Up tomorrow and to to bring a lot of physicality and uh you know we got to play to our identity has there been any growth that you seen from this group since the last time you guys played them I know you guys have injuries right now but has there been anything that we’ve

Seen that has changed I mean um lot of is changing every day and especially with those injuries that we that we having literally like we uh oai starting last night Jordan played DJ played last night Jon played you know so it’s it’s a lot of guys that got opportunity last night so it’s

Constantly evolving at us what I what I’m seeing is I’m seeing uh guys being very connected and they really care about each other and really care about our team and our fans and they they they want to go out there and compete to their best ability what have you seen

From Jon this season that just has stood out to you um he’s playmaking ability his shooting ability and uh he positively surprised me on on defensive end with his active hands getting some shots blocked getting some deflections you know he brought more physicality that than I than I expected so pretty

Happy with him with arj’s free throw shooting do you think the numbers are just like a weird Quirk right now that he’s going through something or is there something more to it than just a strange rut I think it’s just a strange moment over here you know um I know that he’s

Putting a lot of work in lot of times when players going through that it becomes like you know more mental than anything else you know you know and uh he made uh thousands and thousands of free throws in his career all he needs to do come to the free throw line and

Make a shot it’s nothing different than practice or anything else he’ll be fine you know I I talked to some players I remember talking to to Mo Cheeks who was our assistant coach when we coached together in in OKC and obviously Hall of Famer career said I don’t know why and

How but one season I shot 45% from the free throw line and whole the rest of career I was 90% so how to how to explain that you know and he was healthy nothing was wrong you know I I think he’s going to get out of this SL very

Very soon when you study shooters from just at any time period whether it’s your favorite ones or just ones that have always been effective what kind of stands out to you about their game as the similarity that you’re trying to bring it to yours um you know it can be

You know mechanics it can be um just are I think the footwork is you know really important just because of you know you have a good base in your shot um that’s kind of what you first look for cuz you know if you want your shot to be

Straight you know it starts with your base and then it kind of goes into mechanics up top and you know different things like that and you kind of dissect here and there and kind of find what works for you do you notice anything about their off ball movement that they

Have in common as well of course you know that just comes with kind of game playay um how different defenses are playing you cuz it’s going to be different each game and um you know it takes a a lot of skill to you know have a knack for finding open holes and um

Finding different places to be on the court to you know get open shots so is there any area on the court where you feel more comfortable letting it fly or is it just anywhere you find yourself a comfortable open um I say just you know

Wherever I can get my feet set and um you know I practice you know shots from you know anywhere on the court you know on practice so yeah I feel like anywhere you get your feet set and you feel good just let it fly what’s special about the

Corner what’s special about it I don’t know it’s just just I mean that’s where a lot of you know where I stand you know on offense and um where I kind of know go around with different plays like that so I feel like I’m always just on there

And you know when I get more shots there it’s what I obviously have to practice more in practice because you know I’m going to practice game shots and that’s what it is so why do you think this team has been successfully so unselfish what’s the message or what’s

Been the kind of theme that’s carried I think it’s just really just the chemistry we have you not only on the court but off the court you know kind of starts there with um you know you hear all the time how people can you know build their chemistry in different teams

Like that but I feel like it was kind of already sense that you know when the guys already got here you know when the trades happen all that good stuff with um the young guys coming in I feel like we already had kind of a that chemistry

Already built you know kind of hit the ground running when we got in the locker room we already joking around it didn’t really have to take a minute to to build and kind of figure out we already had that so I feel like once we you know

Keep building that you know it only translates to the court even more you’ve seen RJ now you play with a couple months and he’s he’s a guy who probably opened some eyes with his ability to make plays and kind of he’s been a beneficiary put up with a few times yeah

What do you think what do you see when you’re on the FL with them that kind of has made him successful pass yeah he’s he’s amazing um just the player that he is you never know um what he’s going to do with the ball because he can you know score it he

Can shoot it he can um you know make passes so you always got to have your head on swivel especially you know for players like me where I’m around the arc and trying to find you know open Lane because you know he’s driving bringing in too much attention where um he’s

Either going to score the ball or make an open pass so it’s it’s yeah it’s great play with him with uh Scotty and yako you’re seen increased minutes what kind of opportunity does that present to you um just the same really just carry the same mindset that I had you know at

The start of just coming in um doing whatever the team needs um trying to help in any way I can and um you know coach you know wants me to make a shot then I’m going go in there and try my best to do that he wants me to get on

The ball get a loose ball take get charge whatever so that’s my mindset just go in there and try to make winning plays the Pelicans have a challenging skilled front Court what kind of challenges that present to you tomorrow night um I mean it’s just one thing that

We got to go in locker room and um film room and just try to you know figure out what we can you know do against them and you know playing them last time um just figuring out how we can you know get better from that and I mean just

Trusting coach that’s what we can do um coach mentioned that I think it was a couple weeks ago that he was his plan was to sit down with every play play go through film and then set some goals um do you mind sharing any goals that he

Set with you and also who he has you watching currently actually my meeting hasn’t happened yet it’s soon but no yeah it’ll just be about you know different things that um probably in my case just development wise you know as a young guy coming in here as a rookie and

Um what I can do in these next couple weeks of um just listen to his plan and whatever he needs and I guess it really just have my trust in coach has he um encouraged you to study any player particular game or something that you do

On your own a lot of it’s actually just you know not only film like of our team but just kind of personal film of what I’ve done in the past games what um I can get better at what I’ve got you know better at and um just seeing what I can

Build from through that what did you learn about Moji when you’re with the 95 those minutes and when he with the Raptors yeah mji is my guy um just going down there and um not really knowing anyone on the team except you know Javon Maris um and um trying trying to get get

To know the team and then he was one of the first guys I met and um I feel like off the court you know we have a good good little Bond right there and so whenever I see him it’s it’s great thanks for watching the Toronto rappers YouTube channel check out our latest

Video And subscribe for more here’s mcel in a [Applause] wide

Players and Coach speak with the media following Monday’s practice. #Raptors #TorontoRaptors

0:00 RJ Barrett
3:32 Darko Rajakovic
9:12 Gradey Dick