On Friday, RJ Barrett joined the ranks of postseason heroes when he sealed a Game 6 victory for the Toronto Raptors. Notably, the insane-looking shooter’s bounce on Barrett’s shot looked oddly like another clutch bucket in the Eastern Conference playoffs last year.
Tyrese Haliburton, who got his lucky bounce in Game 1 of the 2025 Eastern Conference Finals, made sure to weigh in on Barrett’s fateful basket in the Raptors’ 112-110 victory.
“That looked familiar,” Haliburton tweeted Friday night.
Both RJ Barrett and Tyrese Haliburton benefited from an unlikely bounce, but there are different circumstances to their respective big-time baskets. In the case of Haliburton, he thought he’d hit a 3-point shot to secure a Game 1 victory for the Pacers, but it turned out to be a long two that forced overtime. Indiana went on to win that game 138-135.
As for Barrett, his team’s season was on the line as the Raptors were on the verge of losing Game 6 to the Cleveland Cavaliers. With less than six seconds left in overtime, Scottie Barnes drove to the paint, drew two defenders, and swung the ball to Barrett.
The Raptors bench, along with the rest of Scotiabank Arena, waited with bated breath as Barrett’s shot bounced high off the rim. When the ball fell back down and hit the bottom of the net, the Toronto fanbase went wild as Barrett and his crew forced a Game 7.
Barrett, who finished with 24 points, nine rebounds, and three assists, will now look to carry over the momentum of this scintillating win as the Raptors look to upset the Cavaliers in the do-or-die game.
“I Saw This One Coming Tonight”: Raptors HC Reacts to RJ Barrett’s Game-Winning Basket in Game 6
After the game, Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic claimed that he’d foreseen RJ Barrett’s shot to set up Game 7.
“Huge moment. Call me crazy. Call me psychic. I saw this one coming tonight.”
Rajakovic added that, prior to the game, he and his assistant coaches had been drawing up after-timeout plays to set up Barrett for success in crunchtime.
