NBA: 10 burning questions for the 2019-20 season
By Phil Watson
3. Do the champs slide back to the pack?
The Toronto Raptors made a Faustian bargain last season, trading popular DeMar DeRozan to the San Antonio Spurs to get Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green.
General manager Masai Ujiri later swung a deadline deal to get veteran big man Marc Gasol from the Memphis Grizzlies and new coach Nick Nurse managed the rotations — and the load management of the fragile Leonard — well enough to get the Raptors their first NBA championship.
But now Leonard is gone to the LA Clippers, with Green joining the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Raptors are left to figure out who the next go-to guy will be.
Kyle Lowry, the All-Star point guard, is 33 and coming off thumb surgery. It’s not likely he’s prepared to be the No. 1 option. Gasol, who will be 35 in January, has always been more of a second- or third-option sort of player.
So Toronto’s ability to get points in a pinch may rest on the ability of Pascal Siakam to take his game up yet another notch.
Spicy P stepped up in a big way last season, growing from rotational piece to solid No. 2 option, earning Most Improved Player honors after averaging 16.9 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 31.9 minutes per game while shooting 54.9 percent overall and a respectable 36.9 percent from deep.
Siakam’s efficiency was a delight, but he might have to sacrifice some of that for volume if the Raptors are to remain in the fight at the top of the Eastern Conference.
As far as aptitude goes, Siakam was an efficient — and busy — scorer at New Mexico State, averaging 15 shots a game as a sophomore and putting up 20.3 points a night while shooting 53.9 percent overall.
The NBA, though, is a long way from the WAC and it might be hard for the 25-year-old native of Cameroon to produce another huge leap in productivity. If that’s the case, Nurse may be hard-pressed to scheme enough creative ways for Toronto to put points on the board consistently.