Siakam’s work ethic is second to none
Young Raptor’s effort is beginning to pay off in his playmaking skills
TORONTO — The Toronto Raptors have always felt they had something special in Pascal Siakam, an energetic, athletic young big man with a work ethic second to none and the ability to have an impact on a game simply because of his consistent effort.
They did not, however, see the evolution of Siakam as a playmaker and that is the most welcome and surprising aspect of his evolution this season.
Siakam still runs like a colt, he’s still an above average finisher on the break and he’s shown glimpses of being able to defend multiple positions but the passing? The passing came out of nowhere.
“To say that he was going to come in and be a … point forward, I wouldn’t have said that and anybody who said that is lying,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey told reporters in Washington this week.
Yet Siakam has become an initiator at times with Toronto’s second unit, able to gather a rebound and take off leading a break, further speeding up the game with the second group that relies on quickness in transition to get easy baskets.
The 6-foot-9 Siakam had 10 assists in two games leading up to Friday’s road outing against the Wizards and 21 assists in a seven-game stretch.
He’s not going to run the team in any half court sets but his decision-making in transition has been top-notch and adds another layer to the second unit’s ability to change a game.
“I definitely like to get guys involved, it gets me going, it excites me,” he said. “I definitely like that and just being able to move the ball, we all move the ball and it’s great to see.”
There are still holes in Siakam’s game — he’s an 18 per cent shooter from threepoint range and that won’t cut it in the NBA climate — but there’s also every reason to believe he can become a threat from long distance.
He had almost zero ball-handling skill as a rookie but worked on it last summer to the point where he’s trusted by his coaches and teammates to make correct decisions. He commits fewer than one turnover on average per game so he’s not an erratic ball-handler at all.
“He’s still in a place right now where he’s trying to improve his three-point shooting (but) his ball-handling is off the charts,” Casey said this week.
“He can handle the ball against pressure, handle the ball on the break and make good decisions.” And run. Always run.
Shooting and ball-handling aside, Siakam’s most important contribution to the Raptors this season has been his consistent effort.
He’s the best player on the team getting quickly from defence to offence, resulting in all kinds of easy transition baskets and dunks that fuel the backup group. And on nights when shots aren’t dropping or fatigue is setting in, the can count on the 24-year-old trying to infuse the team with energy.
“That is a gift,” Casey said. “I told him after the game (in Orlando on Wednesday) night, he won that game just with his energy and speed. Wasn’t anything skill-wise, wasn’t three-point shooting, it wasn’t any jump shots, it was his running that really set the tone for us in Orlando.
“That’s something that’s hard to do in this league, is to run the floor every time. And you may only get it once out of six or seven times but that one time deflates a team and that’s what he did last night.
“My hat’s off to the young man and I just hope he can maintain it 25 more games and 30 more games after that.”