"Pump the brakes": Stephen A. Smith on Raptors coach's praise of Scottie Barnes

Following a close loss last night in Los Angeles, Toronto Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic had his first moment this season where he went viral for his post-game comments.

In a now-iconic rant, Rajakovic questioned the integrity of the referees, with the Lakers picking up 23 free throws in the fourth quarter in the 132-131 win, compared to just two for Toronto.

While the parts of the rant calling the officiating “complete crap” and “B.S.” earned most of the headlines, as did Rajakovic suggesting the Raptors could’ve just stayed home, the Toronto coach also snuck in some praise for third-year forward Scottie Barnes.

“We have star players on our team as well. How is it possible that Scottie Barnes, who is an All-Star calibre player in this league, he goes every single time to the rim with force, without flopping, and not trying to get foul calls, he gets two free throws for the whole game? How is that possible? Scottie Barnes is going to be an All-Star, he’s gonna be the face of this league,” Rajakovic said.

The 2021-22 NBA Rookie of the Year, Barnes has averaged 20.7 points, 8.6 rebounds and 5.7 assists in 37 games this season.

One of the shows that discussed Rajakovic’s rant was ESPN’s First Take, with host Stephen A. Smith agreeing with the overall sentiment but pouring cold water on the Raptors coach’s praise for Barnes.

“The other thing that the coach mentioned, is that Scottie Barnes is gonna be the face of the league. Let’s pump the brakes on that. Scottie Barnes is a damn good player. He’s only 22 years of age. He’s averaging nearly 21 [points], nine [rebounds] and six [assists]. He’s a really, really good talent,” Smith said. “He’s got a bright future and stuff like that. But face of the league? Somebody needs to remind him of who Anthony Edwards is, along with various others that are playing in this league right now, the young studs and superstars that are really coming up. I wouldn’t go that far.”

A year ago, Edwards averaged 24.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 79 games in his third season in the league with the Minnesota Timberwolves, making his first career All-Star Game. Barnes will find out his fate soon: All-Star starters will be named on January 25, with full rosters announced on February 1.

Smith’s full comments on Rajakovic’s post-game press conference are available below:

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