The Toronto Raptors have fallen in the Eastern Conference standings, as they have failed to keep up with the top four teams in the conference. A loss like the 120-98 defeat to the Phoenix Suns on Sunday night won't do much to further their cause. In fact, it's a big concern for the Raptors that they failed to perform against a team that was dominant for the second night in a row, never mind that the game was held at the Mortgage Matchup Center.
The entire team wasn't very good on Sunday, the main culprit being Brandon Ingram. Ingram scored only six points on 3-10 shooting from the field, while Immanuel Quickley (11 points on 4-9 shooting) and RJ Barrett (13 points on 5-8 shooting) weren't very good either. But for backup point guard Jamal Sheed, another bad game is a continuation of what is already becoming a worrisome trend.
Sheed has struggled throughout the calendar month of March; The Raptors guard is averaging just 3.3 points on 27.3 percent shooting from the field. Anyway, Scotty Barnes has the support of his peers completely.
"[I would tell him to] Just stay aggressive. Our team, we believe in him. He comes down the slope and creates a lot for us. We know he'll be able to do that every night. He's going to come in to play defense. I think that's what we're focused on,” Barnes said in his postgame presser, via Omar Osman of Raptors Updates.
"He'll find it. Gotta trust him."
Scotty Barnes on Jamal Sheed's recent offensive struggles, and what he would tell Jamal:
"Just stay aggressive. Our team, we believe in that."
"He'll find it. Gotta trust him." pic.twitter.com/Ak5c2ujb1a
- Omer Osman (@OmerOsman200) 23 March 2026
Sheed has been a huge part of what the Raptors are doing this season, and it would be foolish to suddenly lose confidence in him during a difficult stretch. But with Toronto dangerously close to falling into the play-in tournament picture, Shead and the rest of the team will have to figure it out quickly.
