10 things: Scottie Barnes takes over and shows why Raptors drafted him 4th overall

Here are 10 takeaways from the Toronto Raptors' 81-79 win over the Charlotte Hornets in Las Vegas Summer League play.

One — Identity: The way the Raptors set up their Summer League roster is very similar to how their actual roster will function. There isn't a great halfcourt creator who can generate easy looks every trip down, the shooting is iffy, but they will guard every inch of the floor and create advantages in transition. The Raptors closed the game on a 14-2 run over the last five minutes of the game, and when their main guys were in, the Hornets could generate absolutely nothing on offence.

Two — Intentional: On the final play for the Hornets, they got the ball to No. 11 pick James Bouknight, who found himself in what looked to be a mismatch against Precious Achiuwa. But despite Bouknight's best efforts, the slippery guard just couldn't get around the bigger Achiuwa, who nearly got the steal and forced Bouknight to give it up. That's just the reality of going against a team full of 6-foot-9 defenders who can all guard up to 30 feet from the hoop. Charlotte had just eight points in the entire first quarter and couldn't score at all down the stretch. That's what the Raptors were built to do.

Three — Unorthodox: Achiuwa's stop was just one of many in which the Raptors overwhelmed the Hornets with ball pressure. Scottie Barnes also had a handful of impressive sequences including a chase-down block and a steal playing 1-on-2, while Dalano Banton and Ish Wainright also chipped in with highlight stops using their length. As Raptors coach Patrick Mutombo explains, the core pillar of the Raptors' defensive strategy is ball pressure. Regardless of positional convention, the Raptors demand their players to shrink the space and to always attack the ball. The players who do that best will be retained on the roster.

Four — Wow: Barnes has been the Raptors' best defender throughout Summer League, but there were questions over his passivity on offence, which saw him score two field goals in each of the last two games. Well, this performance should quell some of those concerns because Barnes was able to take over on both ends in the second half. Among his many highlight sequences from this game were a turnaround jumper on the baseline, a put-back dunk off his own drive, a handful of powerful drives in transition, a steal guarding two players at once, and a blocked three-pointer. Mutombo said that the emphasis was there to get Barnes more looks in a variety of spots — in the post, having him handle in transition, involving him as the screener — and that the main challenge this early on is finding where exactly he fits best since he's so versatile.

Five — Dominance: The coaching staff will eventually find a way to involve Barnes more consistently, but it also comes down to fostering a mindset within the player that he is always encouraged to be aggressive. It's not so much about Barnes' skillset, so much as it's about his ability to impose his will on the game. When you watch him play, he is just bullying people on both ends. He's strong enough to get to his spots, his athleticism creates a huge margin of error, he's a walking mismatch due to his length, and he's just downright terrifying in transition and on defence. He's the fourth pick for a reason. Barnes sets the bar for his own potential.

Six — Powerful: Achiuwa is another player with that bully element in his game, although he does it in more of the traditional sense as a centre. He put one helpless Hornets defender on a poster and he generally feasted inside the paint. More importantly, he's another guy who can confidently guard every position because he's got quick feet, which is the exact type of defender who fits the scheme. There could be some slight concerns if he goes against the seven-foot-plus behemoths of the league, but the Raptors are also very adept at sending help in those scenarios.

Seven — Tandem: One promising development was the budding chemistry between Achiuwa and Malachi Flynn, which will form the backbone of the Raptors' second unit this season. Flynn was able to find Achiuwa on at least three separate drives to the basket as they're growing more familiar with one another. Flynn typically likes the bounce pass to the roller, and Achiuwa has good hands to catch in stride before going up for the finish. Flynn also learned as the game went on that Achiuwa is unlike other bigs in that you can give him the ball early in transition since he can handle it without slowing down the play.

Eight — Promising: Outside of two charges where he missed shooters in the corners, it was another encouraging showing from second-round pick Dalano Banton, who just signed a guaranteed contract for this season. Banton has arguably been the Raptors' best passer for the tournament as he routinely makes quick reads out of pick-and-rolls, although he can be turnover-prone at times. His outside shot needs work and he could bulk up a bit more, but Banton is clearly talented and he competes hard.

Nine — Solid: This was hardly the 20-point showing from the Houston game, but Ish Wainright was spectacular once again on defence. He took a charge on a 3-on-1 fast break, broke up an alley-oop pass and kept possession to his teammates with a mid-air pass, and was strong enough to rip a rebound right out of the hands of a centre to trigger a fast-break sequence. Wainright did have some unsightly misses where he was a few feet short on airballs or banking them off the glass from the corners, but it's his defence that will ultimately decide his place on the roster.

Ten — Pro: This was a much more composed effort from Flynn, who wasn't as focused on getting his own shot and was more dedicated to providing for his team. He took on the most difficult assignment against Bouknight, and while the lottery pick did catch Flynn a step out of place on some deep threes, Flynn gave it right back while setting up his teammates. His job is to be a leader for this team, and tonight he delivered stability on both ends.

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