Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports
Fred VanVleet Says Pascal Siakam is Playing at an 'All-NBA Level'
Who are the top six forwards in the NBA?
We'll put the vagaries of NBA positions aside for a moment and try to keep things simple. Just go with your gut instinct. I'll give you some help: LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant, Jimmy Butler, DeMar DeRozan, who we'll call a forward because he's, well, a forward. Who is sixth?
After missing the first 10 games of the season due to offseason shoulder surgery, Pascal Siakam has suddenly thrust himself into the conversation not just for a spot on the All-Star team, but quite possibly a spot on the All-NBA team. It's early, of course, but it's hard to argue that the former All-NBA second teamer isn't at the very least in the mix.
Let's take a look at some numbers for the Toronto Raptors star forward. Here's a list of players averaging 20 points, eight rebounds, and five assists this season:
| Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
Nikola Jokic | 26.0 | 13.7 | 7.8 |
Giannis Antetokounmpo | 28.8 | 11.2 | 6.8 |
Luka Doncic | 25.6 | 8.9 | 8.9 |
James Harden | 23.0 | 8.4 | 10.1 |
Pascal Siakam | 21.0 | 8.1 | 5.2 |
Or how about we just add up points, rebounds, and assists for all the forwards in the league.
| Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Giannis Antetokounmpo | 28.8 | 11.2 | 5.8 | 45.8 |
LeBron James | 29.1 | 7.7 | 6.3 | 43.1 |
Kevin Durant | 29.3 | 7.4 | 5.8 | 42.5 |
Jayson Tatum | 26.2 | 8.4 | 4 | 38.6 |
DeMar DeRozan | 26.4 | 5 | 5 | 36.4 |
Jimmy Butler | 22 | 6.3 | 6.3 | 34.6 |
Pascal Siakam | 21 | 5.2 | 5.2 | 34.1 |
"He’s been at an All-NBA level," said Siakam's Raptors teammate Fred VanVleet. "I’m watching him everyday, I’m watching him in practice, I’m watching him in shootaround, I’m watching him in the games, he’s been at an All-NBA level for a while now."
Siakam is actually having a better season this year than in his 2019-20 All-NBA year. His scoring is about the same (21 points this year compared to 22.9 three years ago) and his assists, rebounds, steals, and field goal percentages have all improved.
"He’s just gotten better," VanVleet said. "He hit his roadblock but he got through. He’s on the other side of it now, he’s playing the best basketball of his career."
The big difference between this season and that All-NBA season is the winning. The Raptors were 51-21 (.708) when the 2019-20 season was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, Toronto is 24-23 (.511) as of Monday. That traditionally isn't good enough to cut it for All-NBA.
That's why Siakam's All-NBA case rests partially on his ability to continue to carry the workload he has shoulder this season and partially on the rest of the roster's ability to support him. If the Raptors can go on a run in the second half of the season and jump from the play-in picture to the playoff picture, it'll be tough for anyone to keep Siakam off their All-NBA ballot when the season comes to an end.
Further Reading
Making sense of Toronto's Goran Dragic trade options
Raptors flex defensive might to eke out exhausting triple-overtime victory over Heat
Goran Dragic's contract can help the Raptors at next month's trade deadline
