The Raptors were on the road tonight in Cleveland for Game 5 of their first-round series against the Cavaliers. Shortly before the game started, Charles Barkley made a bold claim about Scottie Barnes during the Inside the NBA show while previewing his matchup with Evan Mobley.
“Scottie Barnes is a better player than Evan Mobley, number one. He’s a better player, and I keep telling you that Scottie Barnes is a top 15 player. If he played in the [United] States on a good team,” said Barkley before Kenny Smith reacted in shock, “If he stayed in the states? He’s in the same association!”
“We don’t ever show Toronto,” Barkley responded, and then Kenny Smith reminded him about Vince Carter’s fame in Toronto.
“We know Vince Carter because he won the Slam Dunk competition,” Barkley replied before shifting the conversation to the importance of James Harden and Donovan Mitchell’s performance in Game 5.
But let’s dive into whether Barkley is right about his take on the comparison between the two players, and where Barnes ranks across the league.
Scottie Barnes won the Rookie of the Year award in his first season (2021-22) after one of the closest races in NBA history between him, Evan Mobley, and Cade Cunningham. Subsequently, in 2024 and 2026, he earned his two All-Star selections for the Raptors, even though he was an injury replacement for Julius Randle in 2024.
Meanwhile, Evan Mobley had a leap season in 2025 where he earned his first and only NBA All-Star selection so far. But he also won the Defensive Player of the Year, which brought him a lot more attention than an All-Star selection does. Hence, the discussions had begun even in the media that Mobley may now finally be better than Barnes.
But considering that it is hard to objectify which is more important among the two achievements, let’s take a look at their career statistics for an objective measure.
Scottie Barnes has averaged 17.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 5.2 assists in the five seasons he has played. He shot 47.5% from the floor and 30.1% from beyond the arc.
On the other hand, Evan Mobley has averaged 16.7 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 3.0 assists in the same duration while shooting 54.7% from the field and 30.9% from beyond the arc.
Upon a close review of the two players, it is hard to distinguish whether one is better than the other since their statistics are fairly similar. But if you look at the career achievements, Barnes and Mobley were both selected once for the NBA All-Star team, while Mobley also won arguably the second-most prestigious postseason award after the MVP.
But according to Charles Barkley, Barnes is simply not getting the attention he deserves from the media because he’s playing for a team based outside of the United States, the Toronto Raptors.
Therefore, there may be some substance in Barkley saying that Barnes does not get the credit he deserves simply because of the team he plays on, but I do not agree with the fact that he’s a top 15 player in the league right now and objectively better than Evan Mobley anymore. Especially since I can already name 15 players better than Scottie Barnes on the NBA All-Star teams selected this season.
But the result of this series could play a pivotal role in determining who is objectively better among the two, as it is the first time both these players are facing each other in the playoffs. Hence, it will be interesting to revisit this debate after this series is over. But as of now, it is hard to objectively answer.
