The Cleveland Cavaliers ended Toronto's playoff run in seven games last weekend, but the loudest takeaway from the series wasn't the bracket — it was Scottie Barnes. Draymond Green spent a chunk of his Tuesday show breaking down what he saw, and the answer wasn't kind to the rest of the Raptors' roster.
"Scottie Barnes had an incredible series — averaging 24, nine rebounds and six assists on 51 per cent shooting," Green said. "A lot of people were comparing his defence to mine, which I take as an honour. But I've told you all before — I think Scottie Barnes is an incredible defender. Just the way he covers up mistakes for people with his size and length and the way he can move. He can legitimately guard positions one through five. And I think he showed that in this series. It was beautiful to watch."
That performance, Green argued, has settled a question Toronto's front office has danced around for two years. "Now, I think the question's been answered. Can you build around Scottie Barnes? They really have to go take a look at this roster. Is Yakob Poeltl best around Scottie Barnes? Or do you need to look at Scottie Barnes more like a Giannis, right? Does he need a shooting five as opposed to Yakob Poeltl clogging the paint up?"
Green wasn't proposing the centre be moved for nothing. The implication was structural. The franchise tax and the salary cap don't allow Toronto to keep Poeltl and add a stretch big without trade-side gymnastics, and as long as the lane is full, Barnes' transition game and finishing lanes get suffocated. "That's something to look at," Green said.
He also raised the contract conversation Raptors fans have been debating in private all season. "Immanuel Quickley's on a large salary, you know. How does he fit with this team? How does he make this team better? Ultimately questions that you have to answer. I know my goal moving forward would be — I need to put the best guys I can around Scottie Barnes. And when I do that, we're going to give ourselves a chance to get back in contention."
Green flagged Brandon Ingram's absence as the unspoken weight on the series. "Scotty Barnes did what he did this series missing Brandon Ingram, I think the last three games. And BI didn't have his best series. With Brandon Ingram being ruled out, I think it definitely impacted the game because he's just another guy that you don't have to account for. Brandon Ingram is the one guy on their team that can just go get it for himself at any time, in any way. So I think it definitely impacted the outcome."
The other side of the Raptors' Game 7 ledger was the Cavaliers' Jared Allen, who exploded for 22 points, 19 rebounds and three blocks in the win. Green tipped his cap, but he laid down a marker. "I guess he got over his fear of the lights being too bright," Green said. "When James Harden first got traded to the Cavaliers, it unlocked Jared Allen, and then it kind of went back down again. James said yesterday — when he's playing with that type of force, we're a completely different team. And it's true. They're going to need him or Evan Mobley to play at that level. So the excuse of the lights being too bright doesn't work anymore. You got to use this and you got to build on that. You've overcome that now — unless you go back into that."
For Toronto, the offseason questions Green left on the board are sharper than the ones the bracket asked. Poeltl's fit. Quickley's value. Ingram's health. The rare luxury of a top-five defender who can be the offensive engine, too. "My goal moving forward would be — I need to put the best guys I can around Scottie Barnes," Green repeated, in case Masai Ujiri was listening. "You know, and when I do that, we're going to give ourselves a chance to get back in contention."
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*Originally published on [NBA News Global](https://nbanews.global/article/draymond-green-scottie-barnes-raptors-future-yakob-poeltl-quickley-may-2026). Visit for full coverage.*
