RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley expect rush of emotion in return to MSG
Raptors guard RJ Barrett shoots over Heat guard Josh Richardson, left, and guard Tyler Herro during the first half of an NBA game Wednesday in Toronto. Credit: AP/Frank Gunn
TORONTO — There was a moment in the first quarter Wednesday night at Scotiabank Arena when RJ Barrett was in the middle of the lane and fired a pass to a wide-open Immanuel Quickley in the corner. He buried a three-pointer, then skipped upcourt. The Miami Heat called timeout in an attempt to stop what seemed like an avalanche crashing down on them, but the two former Knicks led what would grow to a 37-point lead for the Toronto Raptors.
It had seemed as if that was supposed to happen at Madison Square Garden for years to come. Two homegrown young players, first-round draft picks, budding stars, who would help the franchise to great heights.
But that came to an abrupt end on Dec. 30 when each received an early-morning phone call that they had been traded to the Raptors.
It seems to be one of those rare trades in which both sides are pleased. The Knicks are banking on OG Anunoby to be the missing piece to their next-level push. The Raptors got a Toronto native coming home in Barrett to rouse the home crowd and a point guard in Quickley who they believe is just beginning to touch his potential.
Raptors guard Immanuel Quickley drives around Heat center Bam Adebayo during the first half of an NBA game Wednesday in Toronto. Credit: AP/Frank Gunn
But before any of those long-term questions are answered, another one awaits Saturday night: How will the New York fans greet them when they come back to Madison Square Garden for the first time as opponents?
“I love the fans,” Barrett said. "I don’t know what they’re going to do. But I love the fans and I appreciate them rooting for me. I appreciate them getting on me. Everything was always love in New York. I really from the bottom of my heart truly enjoyed being there.”
Quickley expressed the same sentiments, noting, “I even said it in my Instagram and [The Players] Tribune thing that it was nothing but love when I was there. I feel part of my childhood is gone because that’s kind of where I grew up as a professional basketball player. I was in New York my whole life. Change is always crazy, but it happens.”
It does, but this one caught both by surprise. Quickley was sleeping in a hotel in Indiana, waiting for that night’s Knicks-Pacers game. Barrett was on his way downstairs in the hotel for treatment to get ready for the second night of a back-to-back. And suddenly they were on a plane back to New York.
'Business of basketball'
Quickley might have seemed the more likely player to be dealt. He enters restricted free agency at season’s end and was stuck as a sixth man in New York, albeit one of the best in the NBA, behind Jalen Brunson. But he is worth more to a team like the Raptors, for whom he is a starter and a key piece in their rebuild. Only one player — Chris Boucher — remains on the roster from the team that won an NBA title in 2019 after Toronto dealt Anunoby to the Knicks and then agreed in principle to a deal sending Pascal Siakam to Indiana.
“Business of basketball,” Quickley said. “The Knicks made a decision. Not really much you can do about it besides say goodbye to everybody and move on. Expecting to play a basketball game that day and didn’t.”
Barrett had heard his name in trade talks in the summer of 2022 when the Knicks were trying to land Donovan Mitchell, but when those talks fell short, the Knicks signed him to a four-year, $107 million extension. That sounded like a vote of confidence to some, although Barrett laughed Wednesday night and said, “I got a payday. That’s what I was thinking. I was happy.”
Both players seem to be flourishing with the change.
Once the shock wore off, Barrett moved in — temporarily — with his parents. Back home with friends and family, he has been embraced by the city. He is a product of Toronto, and because he speaks fluent French, he is able to be a face of the franchise in two languages.
Quickley is still finding his way. “Everything’s new, totally different country. I’m still learning everything, still learning my routines, still learning names,” he said. But on the court, he has seen his minutes increase and the notion that he is not a starter dismissed. He entered Thursday's game against the Bulls averaging 18.7 points and 5.4 assists in nine games for Toronto.
The Knicks ran off five straight wins after Anunoby arrived, finding in him the versatile defensive wing they needed while clearing out the offensive style of Barrett that conflicted with Brunson and Julius Randle. The Raptors have been inconsistent and now are in limbo as they shed veteran pieces and accumulate draft picks and young players to surround Scottie Barnes.
“You’ve got an All-NBA player, you’ve got a soon-to-be All-Star over there,” Barrett said of Randle and Brunson. “Those guys are putting up a lot of points every night. A lot of assists. They’re really doing everything over there. With them, I always looked at them, tried to watch what they do, learn, grow my game. I always tried to help, see where I fit in along with those guys. I thought we were a three-headed monster for a little bit. Obviously, as time goes along, they made the trade and it’s been working well for them. So I’m happy for them.''
Locker room voice
Still, something is lost with the departures. Barrett was not the team leader anymore, not with Brunson’s arrival. But he still was a stand-up voice in the locker room and a player who could handle New York, the ups and downs that have ruined bigger names. While Randle had a very public falling out with the fans, Barrett never was shaken.
“I think everyone gets frustrated a little bit,” said Barrett. who entered Thursday's game averaging 20.6 points and 7.2 rebounds in nine games for the Raptors. “But I think for me I always remember who I am. I had my parents staying in my ear, my family staying in my ear. I kept working. I didn’t try to get into any back and forth. I understood also, one thing you’ve got to know about the Knicks fans, they’re passionate. They want to win. They want to win just as bad or maybe more than the players do. To understand that was huge for me.”
So it’s little surprise that when he is asked about his favorite moment from his time with the Knicks, he starts to describe the game-winning, buzzer-beating three-pointer against Boston that set off a raucous celebration at the Garden, but he then corrects himself.
“No, my favorite moment was when we ran out of the tunnel the first playoffs after having no fans all year and hearing the sold-out crowd,” Barrett said. “That was insane.”
Will it sound that way at the Garden when he and Quickley are introduced with the Raptors on Saturday?
“Going to be a lot of fun, going back to a place where my NBA career started,” Barrett said. “It’s going to be cool. There’s going to be a lot of mixed emotions. Trying to focus is going to be the main thing . . . Bittersweet because of course I enjoy being here, playing for the Raptors, being at home. But then leaving New York, the place that has kind of been home for me the last 4 1/2 years, it’s definitely difficult. A lot of memories, a lot of teammates, just friends and staff and a lot of coaches. Man, it’s everything. All the relationships I built over there. That part is tough for sure.”
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
