Former Knicks GM Praises Traded Pick

For former New York Knicks guard RJ Barrett, maybe there truly was no place like home.

Fellow Manhattan alum Scott Perry, however, believes that Barrett’s early surge with the Toronto Raptors has more to do with Barrett’s personal adjustments than anything a return to his native Ontario could hope to spiritually accomplish.

“I’m proud of RJ and how well he has played,” Perry, the Knicks’ former general manager, said on his “Hoops Genius” web series. “What he’s really doing now is he’s reading the game so much better than he was as a young player. When he first came into the NBA, being drafted high, at the Knicks, he wanted to show that he could come in and score and be worthy of that pick.”

Barrett entered the NBA as the third overall pick in the 2019 draft out of Duke, chosen as a consolation prize after bad luck at the lottery denied them a chance to get either Zion Williamson or Ja Morant. He showed flashes of potential over four-plus tours of New York but the Knicks wound up shipping him, as well as Immanuel Quickley, to Toronto in the deal that acquired OG Anunoby back in December.

In Toronto, Barrett more or less serves as a franchise face for the rebuilding Raptors and he has taken advantage of the new opportunity: in five showings this season, Barrett is the team’s leading scorer at 26.2 points per game and already has three showings of at least 30 points, including 31 in an overtime win over Sacramento on Saturday.

It’s indirect vindication for Perry, who made Barrett one of his 11 draft picks during his six-year stretch in the Knicks’ front office. Perry also took note of Barrett’s improved playmaking: in addition to his scoring, Barrett is averaging 7.8 assists, more than doubling his career average. Toronto lost to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday but Barrett put up a 33-point, 12-assist double-double in defeat.

“You’re seeinga more relaxed player,” Perry praised. “His passing has really started to take off there. That’s why I believe he’s scoring 30 much easier.”

Barrett and the Raptors are set to visit Madison Square Garden on Dec 23.

Make sure you bookmark All Knicks for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!