Trading OG Anunoby isn’t expected to be the only big roster move the Toronto Raptors make this season. With the Raptors continuing to slip down the NBA standings and out of the playoff picture, Pascal Siakam could be traded next.
Not only are the Raptors no longer viewed as contenders, the 29-year-old two-time All-NBA forward is also in the last year of his contract. This makes Siakam a prime trade candidate ahead of the Feb. 8 NBA trade deadline. Now, there’s a belief that the Raptors and Siakam are “on the verge of parting ways.” This could mean a trade is very close to completion, yet there are other complications.
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Pascal Siakam to the Indiana Pacers?
According to ESPN’s NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, Siakam will have a lot of control over where he’s traded, mainly due to having an expiring contract. With the Raptors and Siakam “nowhere close” to reaching a contract extension, any team trading for the two-time All-Star won’t want to part with a massive haul of trade capital, without knowing whether there’s mutual interest in reaching an extension in the future.
Yet, there is one team who’s emerged. Woj states that the Indiana Pacers are a “legitimate threat” to sign Siakam this offseason, by way of a max-level contract. While Siakam would appear to be a great fit to land with the Pacers, Indiana does not want to part with either of Bennedict Mathurin or Jarace Walker, their first-round picks from the past two years. Toronto is asking for at least one of those two recent top-ten picks, yet Indiana intends to keep both.
Still, if the Pacers feel Siakam would have interest in agreeing to a max contract, it’s possible the front office makes a stronger offer, yet that doesn’t necessarily mean one of Mathurin or Walker would be included.
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