Pascal Siakam Stresses the Importance of Winning For Raptors' Positivity This Season
The Toronto Raptors have spent months harping on the importance of positive energy. Ask anyone around the team and they’ll tell you there’s a different feel to the way things are being done these days.
That was the hope when Toronto replaced Nick Nurse with Darko Rajaković over the summer. The organization wanted someone who could connect with younger players.
Early returns have been overwhelmingly positive.
“I've been NBA six years and I've had more conversations with him about anything going that with any coach I've ever had. It's been refreshing. It's been great,” Gary Trent Jr. said back on media day.
“He’s just a guy who keeps it real, keeping people accountable, making sure everybody gets on the same page,” Dennis Schröder said of Rajakovic.
Within the group, the new veteran leadership seems to have a more impactful voice. Scottie Barnes said the energy around the team is different with new leadership and he’s been happy with the way the vibes are.
“We have a great team chemistry. Our guys just enjoy being around each other,” Rajaković said.
But it’s easy to talk of positivity in preseason before the games really matter. What happens when this team loses three in a row? What happens when someone is benched or finds themselves in the coach’s doghouse? What happens when someone misses a game-winning shot or turns the ball over in crunch time?
“One thing people always talk about is it fun? Is it not fun? Was last year fun? Winning is fun,” Pascal Siakam said Sunday. “At the end of the day, if you win, you are going to have good vibes. If you don’t, the vibe is not going to be good most of the time.”
That’s the challenge for this group, Siakam admitted. This is by no means some Eastern Conference juggernaut and the losses are going to come. How the team’s first-time head coach and this group that turned on one another last year respond to that adversity is going to be far more telling than anything anyone says in October.
