Scottie Barnes may not have been part of Sean Leathong’s live hit Thursday afternoon but he certainly made sure viewers knew he was there.
The Raptors forward was seen standing outside the team’s practice facility at OVO Athletic Centre eating lunch as Leathong reported on Kawhi Leonard’s multi-year extension.
Moments into the hit, the two-time all-star and former NBA Rookie of the Year walked behind Leathong, flashed several exaggerated facial expressions, nodded his head a few times and appeared to mouth the word “YES” several times when Leonard’s return to Toronto was mentioned.
Leathong said that he was standing outside the practice facility preparing to go live when Barnes first approached him and asked if he was with the media. The CTV News Toronto reporter said that he asked Barnes if he wanted to do an interview, to which he replied “nah, I’ll just be back here.”
After Leathong threw to a clip he asked Barnes what he did, to which the Raptors star said “I didn’t do nothing.”
The clip has since been widely reshared on social media, with even the Toronto Raptors official X account getting in on the fun.
Barnes has also reshared the clip on his Instagram account.
Leonard, recently reacquired by Toronto, formally signed a multi-year extension with the Raptors worth US$115-million this week..
General manager and executive vice-president Bobby Webster spoke to reporters Thursday to share details about the agreement and what it means for the franchise.
The Raptors first preseason game is on Oct. 3, and their regular-season opener is on Oct. 21.
