Toronto Raptors: 3 bold predictions for the 2020-21 season
2. Pascal Siakam is more efficient, makes another All-NBA Team
Pascal Siakam was drafted 27th overall in the 2016 NBA Draft, a relatively old draft prospect seen as a lower-ceiling pick. Even when he became a starter for 38 games in his rookie season it was seen as a move to maintain the rest of the rotation. He only averaged 15.1 minutes per game that season. As a sophomore in 2017-18 he averaged 20.7 minutes per game, starting just five of the 81 he played in.
The explosion happened the next year, as he started alongside Kawhi Leonard and was the team’s second-best player in the NBA Finals, a victory over the Golden State Warriors. He unfurled a spicy spin move and won the Most Improved Player award. Last year he only got better, stepping up in Leonard’s absence to make his first All-Star game, lead the team in scoring and was named Second Team All-NBA at forward.
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Is this progression for real? Is Pascal Siakam, who picked up basketball less than a decade ago and was a middling prospect coming out of New Mexico State, really a consistent All-NBA player? The short answer, and official prediction, is that yes, he is.
His size is not going to change, as his 6’9″ frame is strong enough to take on power forwards (and even some centers) with the length (7’3″ wingspan) to challenge shots at the rim or on the perimeter. That isn’t changing. And while he was old for a prospect, he’s still only 26 years old, in the heart of his prime.
The biggest question is offense, and Siakam has improved every single year of his career here. He has two straight years of being a 36 percent 3-point shooter at decent volume, and nothing about his shot profile looks to be extremely lucky. The emergence of OG Anunoby and the re-signing of Fred VanVleet ensure he won’t have to bear too onerous of a load. This guy is for real.