Siakam making good first impression
Rookie strong candidate for backup big man role
CALGARY— There is a job to be had with the Toronto Raptors, minutes to be earned, and an unlikely candidate is making an early run at winning the competition.
While the process is just beginning — a handful of practices and one exhibition game is all they have to base anything on — Pascal Siakam has emerged as one of those energetic kids who can learn the nuances of the NBA quickly enough to contribute.
The 27th pick in last June’s draft has been one of the more impressive candidates to fill a frontcourt backup role for the Raptors, who are looking to find someone to handle 12 or 15 minutes a night with the ability to defend multiple positions.
The six-foot-nine native of Cameroon had a solid start on his quest, with eight rebounds and nine points in Toronto’s 97-93 win over the Golden State Warriors in Vancouver on Saturday night. He did have some rookie moments where the game looked too fast for him, but his energy and willingness to take on whatever defensive assignment he needed to were impressive.
“His motor, his sense of urgency on the ball when the ball goes up, to be able to rebound,” were what DeMar DeRozan noticed about the 22-yearold. “And the more he gets an opportunity to play, to get a feel for the game, understanding for the game, he’s going to be a helluva player.”
About the only true competition in camp is for the backup big man job. Siakam and fellow rookie Jakob Poeltl will be given every opportunity to earn that spot, as much as it’s needed.
A “small ball” Raptors lineup using two of Jared Sullinger, Patrick Patterson and DeMarre Carroll in the front court could become commonplace when Jonas Valanciunas is resting, but there will be times when one of the rookies is needed.
How they defend will determine who plays, and Siakam got a crash course in the vagaries of NBA lineups these days while guarding the likes of Kevin Durant in a hybrid Warriors lineup in his first outing.
“I told him, ‘When you get on the floor, (you’re) going to have to defend,’ and that’s true with all the young guys,” coach Dwane Casey said. “We’re not putting him there for his offence and that’s what we wanted to see, to see if he could guard a guy like that.
“It’s exhibition and it’s hard to see, but I thought he did a decent job for the first time out.”
It will be, as is always the case with young big men, an up-and-down process to get acclimated to the speed and skill of NBA opponents. It’s why getting Siakam and Poeltl significant minutes in the exhibition season is imperative.
“Pascal is going to be a guy who can guard multiple positions,” Sullinger said. “His energy level, his intensity, just his ability to change shots at the rim. Pascal is going to be a difference maker.” Once he understands that he doesn’t have to go 100 kilometres an hour all the time.
“You can tell he was really playing fast and speeding things up,” Sullinger said. “But as the game will slow down for him, he’ll be great.”