RJ Barrett’s long-awaited return to the court ended in heartbreaking fashion on Friday night, as the Raptors guard was forced to limp off the floor in visible pain during Toronto’s 117-125 loss to the Boston Celtics at TD Garden.

Midway into the fourth quarter, Barrett was making a drive into the paint and rolled his ankle on a defender’s (seemingly Boston’s Sam Hauser) foot. The fall was brutal enough for him to cry out in pain and be unable to move for several seconds.

His teammates immediately helped him up. He limped out of the court and was later ruled out for the remainder of the game. The Raptors stated he had suffered a left ankle injury and will be undergoing further evaluation to determine the severity.

The 25-year-old had played almost 30 minutes by then. Barrett tallied an impressive 19 points, 4 rebounds and 7 assists in this game.

This road trip hasn’t been going great for the Raptors. Their last game in Charlotte ended with Brandon Ingram injuring his right thumb in the first half.  He was ruled out for this game, along with Scottie Barnes, who has an injured knee.

RJ Barrett carried the team against the Hornets after losing Ingram with a dominant 28-point stunner. Immanuel Quickley’s clutch buzzer-beater gave them a win by 1 point. So losing Barrett for another extended period doesn’t look good for the Raptors.

RJ Barrett carried the Raptors through a rollercoaster season

For Barrett, an injured ankle is sure to play on his mind after the kind of season he’s had. He missed 15 games between November and December 2025 due to a right knee sprain. Despite his break, he’s averaging 19.6 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.5 assists on a career-best 58.8% true shooting through 22 games this season.

The timing of his injuries has been unfavorable for the Raptors as well. They came into Friday night’s game with a 23-15 record after beating the Hornets. Head coach Darko Rajaković was forced to navigate the matchup without All-Star Scottie Barnes (knee), Brandon Ingram (thumb), and starting center Jakob Poeltl (back).

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His biggest stabilizer was Barrett through it all.

Rajaković could only tell reporters that they’re evaluating Barrett’s condition after the game. We don’t know if he’d miss more games after this. But with that crowded injury list, Toronto’s offense is effectively diminished. When they’re without Barrett, the team is 7-9.

Without Barrett, Immanuel Quickley once more tried to rally the team with a valiant 17-point effort. However, with Payton Pritchard’s 27 points and Jaylen Brown’s 25 points, Boston pulled away in the final quarter.

Now Barrett has until Monday when the Raptors play against the 76ers. Maybe a couple of days will help him overcome this setback without missing games.