The Toronto Raptors made a depth addition, snagging forward Will Barton from the buyout market Tuesday.
Barton, who was a possible target for the Boston Celtics, now joins a Raptors team in search of a push over the final stretch to secure a playoff spot — a hope currently hanging on by a thread with the Washington Wizards and Chicago Bulls not too far behind Toronto in the standings.
The Raptors and Barton agreed on a deal, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, which makes the 32-year-old eligible to join Toronto’s playoff roster with 20 games remaining on its regular season schedule.
Following the NBA trade deadline, Barton and the Wizards finalized a contract buyout after the veteran was under a one-year agreement worth $14.5 million.
Barton averaged 7.7 points with 2.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists in Washing this season while shooting 38.7% from the field through 40 games off the bench. Barton also played 19.6 minutes per game, the lowest time he’s spent on the floor in the last eight seasons. This came following a much more successful eight-year run with the Denver Nuggets where Barton served in a starter’s role.
With Washington being a failure for both sides, a clean slate with a greater opportunity will likely best suit Barton. Joining the Raptors for the remainder of the season would give Barton a shot at redemption against his former team. Before Tuesday night’s game, the Raptors held a one-game lead over the Wizards for the ninth place in the Eastern Conference.
With Barton, Toronto gets a versatile veteran with 29 games of playoff experience. Raptors head coach Nick Nurse has the ability to plug Barton into the starting lineup or any reserve unit that’ll best assist Toronto moving forward.
As a corresponding move, the Raptors also waived former Celtics forward Juancho Hernangomez.
