RJ Barrett scored 25 points to lead seven players in double figures and help the visiting Toronto Raptors roll to a 138-118 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday in the season opener for both teams.
Toronto has won four straight games in Atlanta.
Barrett was 9-for-12 from the floor and added eight rebounds and five assists. Scottie Barnes scored 22 points and had nine assists. Brandon Ingram, playing in his first game for Toronto after being acquired in a trade in February, added 16 points and nine rebounds.
Others in double figures for the Raptors were Gradey Dick with 21, Jakob Poeltl with 14, Immanuel Quickley with 13 and Jamal Shead with 10.
Atlanta was led by Jalen Johnson with 22 points, seven rebounds and eight assists. Johnson was limited to 36 games last season because of injuries and shoulder surgery.
Trae Young had 22 points and five assists and Kristaps Porzingis, Atlanta’s big offseason acquisition, had 20 points and seven rebounds. Onyeka Okongwu came off the bench to score 18 and Zaccharie Risacher scored 16 but sat out the fourth quarter after spraining his right ankle.
Toronto, sparked by Barrett’s 10 points, led by as many as 10 in the first quarter, only to have Atlanta ride 12 points from Johnson to cut the lead to 36-34. The Raptors set the pace with their aggressive defense and enjoyed a 13-point advantage in the second quarter, but the Hawks trimmed the lead to 65-59 at halftime.
The Raptors took control in the third quarter after Atlanta’s defensive stalwart Dyson Daniels went to the bench with his fifth personal foul at 8:18. Toronto scored 45 points in the quarter, outscoring the Hawks 16-2 over the final four minutes, and took a 110-87 lead into the fourth quarter.
Toronto played without Ja’Kobe Walter (illness) and Collin Murray-Boyles (right forearm strain). Atlanta reserve Keaton Wallace took a hard fall in the second quarter after Barrett stepped on his foot and chipped his teeth; he did not return.
Both teams play again on Friday. Atlanta travels to Orlando, while Toronto hosts Milwaukee.
–Field Level Media
