It hasn’t been too long since RJ Barrett donned a Knicks uniform, but in those couple of months so much has already changed.
Led by newly appointed captain and superstar point guard Jalen Brunson, New York has quickly turned themselves from one of the bottom feeders in the league into a legitimate title contender.
While Barrett isn’t with the revamped team any longer to reap the benefits of the dramatic turnaround, he’s happy to have been able to play a part in helping get things trending back in the right direction.
“People forget we really built something there,” he told David Stol of Sharp magazine. “When I arrived we weren’t contending and we weren’t really close, but my second year we made the playoffs and we just kept building.
“We finally gave the fans something to cheer for and they deserved it. It’s a tough city but you earn their love and I’m glad we got there for them. I miss my boys over there, the relationships you build over time, and the fans.”
Expectations were low during Barrett’s first season with the club coming off a franchise-worst campaign, but the hope was that he’d help bring them the young star they’d been looking to build around.
New York went on to make the playoffs two of the next three years he was in the Big Apple, but Barrett endured up-and-down campaigns, showing bursts of the upside he presented but never quite reaching his full potential.
As a result, New York decided to ship him off to the Raptors along with fan favorite point guard Immanuel Quickley as part of the OG Anunoby deal ahead of this year’s trade deadline.
While Barrett misses his former teammates with the Knicks, he’s come to embrace the pressure that’s been brought upon him playing back home in Toronto for the team he grew up rooting for.
“It’s been such an amazing ride,” he said. “It’s a dream come true. I grew up with my dad taking me to games, so when I found out I was coming home I didn’t know how to act. I was pinching myself and telling my people, ‘We’re really here. We’re playing for the Raptors.’”
Living out that dream, Barrett was able to take his game to another level down the stretch, averaging a career-high 21.8 points while shooting an efficient 55.3 percent from the field and 39.2 percent from three-point land.
And now, he’ll look to carry that production over to his first full season in Toronto, while the Brunson-led Knicks look to take the next step as a contender.
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