Hall of Famer Charles Barkley commended Toronto Raptors rookie Scottie Barnes for playing through a left ankle injury in Game 4 on Saturday versus the Philadelphia 76ers.
Of course, Barnes first suffered the injury in Game 1 after his foot was stepped on by Joel Embiid. He missed the next two games before returning to play on Saturday as the Raptors won to avoid a series sweep. He had six points, 11 rebounds and two assists.
The Rookie of the Year even reinjured the same ankle in Game 4. He came up limping in the second quarter after he appeared to trip on the leg of a defender. He was eventually able to return after receiving treatment from the team medical staff.
The conversation of Barnes playing through his injury occurred Monday on “Inside the NBA” when the crew on TNT was talking about Ben Simmons. He was rumored to debut with the Brooklyn Nets in Game 4 versus Boston but was eventually ruled out due to a back injury.
The Nets were then eliminated by the Celtics on Monday.
Simmons’ decision to sit and miss the entire season was heavily criticized by Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith. They each thought Simmons should have tried to play and help his teammates in the playoffs. Barkley then gave Barnes praise for playing on Saturday.
If you go back and look at that Toronto game we had Saturday, that boy who won Rookie of the Year, he was out there on one leg. He didn’t try to do anything, he was just like, ‘I gotta try to help my team.’ I don’t even know if he scored but he was just trying. … I was so impressed by Scottie Barnes.
Barnes emerged as a key player this season for the Raptors and played a major role in the team qualifying for the playoffs. His absence in Games 2 and 3 greatly affected them as he can do so much on the court and play in a variety of roles.
Toronto managed to stave off elimination when Barnes returned in Game 4 and the group even took Game 5 on Monday to bring the series to 3-2. Barnes had 12 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals in that 103-88 win in Philadelphia.
Comparing the injuries between Barnes and Simmons was likely a bit unfair to Simmons as there are other extenuating factors to consider with his situation. However, it is still certain that Barnes earned plenty of respect for his decision to play.
Game 6 is scheduled to tip off on Thursday at 7 p.m. EDT.
This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
[lawrence-related id=75273,74646,73851]
[mm-video type=video id=01g14nqpfvabz6wmqm8n playlist_id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01f1jxkahtwnvzepyp image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g14nqpfvabz6wmqm8n/01g14nqpfvabz6wmqm8n-6fcaec453941fda56438122b790ba9fd.jpg]
[listicle id=74825]