Physicality proves to be Raptors’ advantage against Hornets

Two clutch blocks from Scottie Barnes and Brandon Ingram, and three post-ups from Barnes in the second and fourth quarters against the Charlotte Hornets, proved a new identity of these burgeoning 2025-26 Toronto Raptors. 

First the post-ups. Barnes caught the ball in the mid-post after a sloppy play. He had eight or so seconds left with which to work. He pounded his way into the paint and went with the footwork that traditionally leads him to his left-handed hook shot from five feet. That’s a reliable shot for Barnes and would have been a solid look. Instead he pivoted off that back foot, went with his right hand, and finished with a finger roll through the body of his defender. No softness to that move. 

A few minutes later Barnes was back in the post. He again turned straight through the body of his defender, but this time he missed. No matter. He simply stole the ball right away the hapless Hornet would-be rebounder and threw a dart to Jakob Poeltl on the other side of the paint for a layup. 

The two moments bookended a 10-0 run for the Raptors. Toronto was playing … fine. It wasn’t outplaying Charlotte in any massive way. Charlotte was beating Toronto on the glass and in transition, to that point. Charlotte found open driving lanes, especially for LaMelo Ball, who found simple finishes with his inside hands to beat Toronto’s paint help. Frustration with the officials seemed to prevent Toronto from finding much offensive rhythm outside of a few stretches.

But physicality proved to be Toronto’s redemption. This hasn’t always been a team that beats up smaller opponents. In fact, bigger opponents have proved to be something of a kryptonite so far this season. But when Toronto has been the bigger, more athletic team, it has taken advantage.

Later, Poeltl did the same as Barnes, swiping the ball away from a Hornets rebounder, off his leg and out of bounds. Barnes switched onto Kon Knueppel late in the second quarter, who at that point had a game-high 13 points. Barnes stepped up aggressively, pushing him back and surprising Knueppel, tipping away the soft pass, which RJ Barrett picked off and took the other way. Those stolen possessions proved to be differentiators in a game in which Toronto didn’t have enough going for an easy win. 

There were positives outside of physicality. Brandon Ingram finally shook loose from deep, hitting his triples off the bounce and the catch. Gradey Dick was phenomenal, not just hitting his shots, but also passing when he had advantages but didn’t need to force it against set rim protectors. 

Immanuel Quickley had some of my favourite passes that I’ve seen from him as a Raptor. At one point, he pump-faked, drove, put his man on his back, engaged the help defender, and laid the pass down to Sandro Mamukelashvili for a layup. Later, he hesitated behind the arc, push-dribbled into a drive, and threw an early-beat pass to a cutting Mamukelashvili from the weakside corner. Those are relatively simple plays, but they’re point guard plays that create layups for teammates. But, in the spirit of the ho-hum game, Mamukelashvili missed both layups. (Toronto shot strangely poorly in the paint in general.)

Quickley in general continued his excellent form of play. He hit his triples, including some faaaaast-release jumpers off the catch. He pushed in transition, and he even made the easy passes in transition rather than looking to attack against multiple defenders.

Despite the positives, Toronto couldn’t put Charlotte away. The Raptors’ defence never found its teeth, not really. (Until the end, when it really, really found those chompers.) Barrett especially gave up plenty of easy drives. Toronto committed oodles of careless, casual turnovers. There were some clear refereeing struggles, and Toronto reacted poorly to the whistle. Shortly after a full-court drive for a layup, Barnes had to sit for a stretch in the fourth due to what looked like a hurt elbow.

And yet, all of this (assuming Barnes’ health) bodes well for Toronto. Coming into the game, the Raptors were fourth in the East, with the fewest home games yet played in the conference, with a top-10 offence and defence. Those are remarkably impressive indicators. And the Raptors have won in different ways so far through the season. (One thing we haven’t seen nearly enough is winning minutes from the starters, which was again absent against the Hornets.) Still.

Early in the season, the Raptors found wins by pushing in transition with relentless verve. Toronto has won with shot-making. In this one, the Raptors had a size and athleticism advantage. That was enough. 

With Toronto unable to finish things, unable to grow a lead, Ingram shouldered the burden. He did it, of course, with physicality. He rejected a screen from Barrett, bulldozed his way straight into Charlotte’s waiting big, and threw a one-handed dunk into his teeth.

Then the blocks. My god the blocks. Heroic, outrageous, silly. Clutch, audacious. With seconds remaining, Ingram slunk into the paint for a game-saving help block from behind, his third of the game. Barnes topped him with zero on the clock with a real game-saving block on an offensive rebound from Charlotte. Both swats preserved the two-point lead.

Just prior to those preposterous blocks came the third Barnes post-up that defined Toronto’s game. Barnes tied the game with a minute left on a post-up, half-spinning into a two-hand dunk through his defender’s body. The team was playing tired and slow, but Barnes knew he was the biggest and the strongest player on the floor.

Good teams win in different ways. And so far through this young season, it is inarguable that the Raptors are a good team. Toronto keeps climbing the standings and is now tied for third in the East. Barnes remains a dominant leader. We’re now watching just how far he can lift this team.

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