TORONTO — It’s time for Toronto Raptors all-stars Brandon Ingram and Scottie Barnes to step up and they know it.
Ingram and Barnes will be centre stage when the Raptors begin their first-round playoff series against the Cavaliers in Cleveland on Saturday afternoon. Ingram, who was Toronto’s top scorer in the regular season, said that after six days off between games he’ll be prepared for the intensity of the post-season.
“I’m ready to be effective in any way that I can be, whether it’s offensively or defensively,” said Ingram at OVO Athletic Centre, the Raptors’ practice facility. “But, at some point in the game, you’ve got to give it to your best players and let them go make a play.
“I’ll be ready.”
Barnes’s 18.1 points per game were the third most for Toronto behind RJ Barrett of Mississauga, Ont., who scored 19.3. More importantly, the six-foot-eight Barnes is the Raptors’ defensive linchpin, guarding all five positions.
“I feel like I’m great defensively, I help our team a lot, and I’m one of the best defenders in the NBA,” said Barnes, who led Toronto with 1.5 blocks and 1.4 steals per game. “I take pride in that and that’s always been me from when I first started.
“That’s where my energy comes from and that’s what I take pride in every time I step onto the floor.”
The Raptors (46-36) snuck up into fifth place in the Eastern Conference in the final game of the regular season, setting up the first-round matchup with the fourth-place Cavaliers (50-32).
Something of a styles clash, Cleveland has a high-powered offence that can score from any position. Guards Donovan Mitchell and James Harden are top-tier isolation players, while forwards Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley can defend and score.
Toronto plays an uptempo, physical style that emphasizes defence with heavy rotations to create mismatches with Barnes, rookie forward Collin Murray-Boyles and veteran centre Jakob Poeltl the nucleus.
“I like our chances and what we can do out there on the floor,” said Barnes. “I think we can do a great job of using our physicality in this series. I feel like our guards can do a great job of putting pressure on their guards.
“Just being able to match their physicality, rebounding, being able to take it to the rim. And then BI out there, he’s going to do his thing.”
Ingram said he’s excited to break down the Cavaliers’ defence, led by Mobley, the 2025 Defensive Player of the Year.
“I think the good thing about this (series) is there’s no back to backs,” said Ingram. “You play one game and you see everything they did or everything that they were trying to take away, and then you just write up another game plan and see if it’s successful.
“I’m excited for that, to go out and just to see how we can outsmart them.”
Neither Ingram nor Barnes have ever won an NBA playoff series.
Ingram’s New Orleans Pelicans lost in the first round to the Phoenix Suns in 2022 and were swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2024. Barnes’s only playoff appearance was Toronto’s last post-season run when the Raptors lost to the Philadelphia 76ers in six games in 2022.
“They’ve been playing basketball their whole lives, they’ve been playing for this big stage,” said Toronto head coach Darko Rajakovic. “I know how much this team cares about this moment in the season and how hard they work to be in this position and to qualify for the playoffs directly. Those guys are going to do everything possible to be very competitive.
“We do not control our outcome. We control our preparation. We control what we do possession by possession and that’s how we’re going to approach this series.”
TALE OF THE TAPE
Regular-season series: 3-0 for Toronto
Points for per game: Toronto, 114.6 (21st); Cleveland, 119.5 (fourth)
Points against per game: Toronto, 111.8 (ninth); Cleveland, 115.4 (15th)
Top points: Toronto, Ingram 21.5 per game; Cleveland, Mitchell 27.9 per game
Top assists: Toronto, Immanuel Quickley 5.9 per game; Cleveland, Donovan Mitchell 5.7 per game
Top rebounds: Toronto, Barnes 7.5 per game; Cleveland, Evan Mobley, nine per game
The big stat: This is the fourth time the Raptors and Cavaliers have ever met in the playoffs, with Cleveland winning the three previous series. Every Cavs win had all-time great LeBron James playing.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 17, 2026.
John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press
