Scottie Barnes Skips Shootaround as Raptors' Season Starts Taking on Water

Missing an NBA shootaround is the basketball equivalent of texting your boss that you have a "stomach thing" on a Friday morning. We all know exactly how this ends. According to Michael Grange, Toronto Raptors star Scottie Barnes sat out Friday's morning walkthrough dealing with an adductor and groin issue.

For anyone holding a ticket or staring at a betting app, a franchise player skipping the morning shootaround is the loudest alarm bell available. It usually means the questionable tag on the official injury report is just polite window dressing before the inevitable downgrade.

"Michael Grange reported that Barnes did not participate in Friday's shootaround due to the adductor/groin issue."

The timing could not possibly be worse for a Toronto squad that is currently in free fall. The Raptors have dropped four straight games, getting absolutely cooked on a Western Conference road trip by the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers before dropping another one to the Denver Nuggets.

During this four-game skid, Toronto's defense has been entirely optional. They surrendered 131 points to the Lakers and 128 to Denver. Trying to fix a leaky defense without your most versatile wing defender is like trying to patch a submarine with a roll of wet paper towels.

Barnes has had a brutal run of luck with injuries over the last calendar year, including hand and ankle issues that derailed his momentum last season. Now, just as he was trying to stabilize a sinking ship, his groin decides to tap out.

Toronto is scheduled to face the Milwaukee Bucks next. With Barnes likely out of the mix, the Raptors will have to find a way to manufacture offense and stops against a desperate Bucks team. Expect the betting lines to move aggressively, and expect Toronto fans to start looking at lottery odds a little earlier than planned.