Point guard Fred VanVleet left the Toronto Raptors in free agency, electing to sign with the Houston Rockets on a deal worth $130 million over three seasons. There’s no doubt that this is a huge loss for the Toronto Raptors.
Forward Scottie Barnes has recently spoken out about Fred VanVleet’s departure. He noted that VanVleet was a “leader” for the team, but noted that the team now has to find ways to win without him.
“Fred was a leader on our team, he was our voice. Someone that was able to talk to the media, throughout the team, the organization. I was happy for him, he got a really big contract, he got his bread but we just gotta win basketball games as a team and move on.”
Scottie on Fred
"Fred was a leader on our team, he was our voice. Someone that was able to talk to the media, throughout the team, the organization. I was happy for him, he got a really big contract, he got his bread but we just gotta win basketball games as a team and move on."
— Vivek Jacob (@vivekmjacob) July 8, 2023
Fred VanVleet will be a culture-setter for the Houston Rockets, and perhaps he can become that veteran leader that the young players on their roster need him to be. He has championship experience, which will be extremely valuable for the development of the entire roster.
For the Toronto Raptors, Scottie Barnes will now have to step up in the absence of Fred VanVleet. He averaged 15.3 PPG, 6.6 RPG, and 4.8 APG for the team last season, and we’ll see if he can make a leap this upcoming season.
Fred VanVleet Was Reportedly Frustrated With Some Of The Young Raptors Players Last Season
The Raptors underachieved last season, and part of the reason may have been some internal locker-room strife. A previous report revealed that Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet were consistently frustrated with the young players on the roster.
“Sources have described a team where the veterans — VanVleet and Siakam especially — were deeply frustrated with the younger players on the roster, and VanVleet let them know about it, something the younger set didn’t appreciate at all,” Sportsnet’s Michael Grange wrote. “[Nick] Nurse wasn’t able to bridge the divide as key players kept getting hurt and open three after open three drew only iron.”
Hopefully, the Toronto Raptors do better next season. The team will have to lean into its youth to succeed and make the playoffs, and we’ll see what ends up happening in the future.
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