Raptors get spark from Rookie of the Year Barnes in series-extending win

TSN Raptors Reporter

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TORONTO – It’s safe to assume that the mood at OVO Athletic Centre was on the sombre side, at least initially.

It was Friday morning, the eve of Game 4, and the Raptors were gathered at the team facility for their scheduled practice session, still coming to terms with that deflating overtime loss a couple nights earlier.

It was the type of game that could have swung the momentum of their first-round series with Philadelphia. Win, and they would have had a fighting chance, down only 2-1. Instead, they found themselves in a 3-0 hole, a deficit from which no team had ever recovered.

The Raptors haven’t had a lot to feel good about since the series opened in Philly last week. First, Scottie Barnes – the lone bright spot in an otherwise dreary Game 1 loss – went down with an ankle injury. Gary Trent Jr. was battling a viral illness that limited him in the first couple contests. Then, returning home from a pair of blowout road losses, they were on the verge of a season-saving Game 3 win Wednesday evening before Joel Embiid’s last-second shot brought them to the brink of elimination.

So, when Nick Nurse and the coaches wheeled a T.V. into the middle of the court, presumably to watch film before practice, they were in desperate need of some good news, something that could give them an emotional lift heading into Saturday’s must-win game.

That’s when they all found out. In a recorded message, former Raptors star Vince Carter addressed Barnes.

“I want to give you some quick Raptors history. Did you know there’s only been three Raptors players in franchise history to win this award,” he said, pointing at the NBA’s Rookie of the Year trophy. “Damon Stoudamire, me, and a [6-foot-9] rookie from