Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
76ers Praises Raptors & Pascal Siakam: 'He is a Bonafide Star'
Pascal Siakam may never garner the national attention of other NBA superstars but within the game, players and coaches alike know the Toronto Raptors forward is truly one of the league's best.
The Philadelphia 76ers, for example, had no answers for Siakam on Wednesday night. When they tried to force him to drive, sagging off him on defense, he took advantage nailing four straight three-pointers until PJ Tucker was forced to adapt. When he did, Siakam showed off his playmaking skills, racking up 13 assists, and using that extra attention to create easy scoring opportunities for his teammates.
"His ball handling has improved, his shooting has improved, his mid-game has improved, he’s understanding where to get his shots from," said 76ers coach Doc Rivers. "Playing him in the playoffs last year, you could really see it, he is a bonafide star in the league. He's just tough and that all comes from work, that's not an inborn act. He put (in) some time and it shows.
As for the Raptors as a team, the 76ers certainly had no fun going up against Toronto's swarming defense. Every time Joel Embiid touched the ball there was another body coming over to help and wreak havoc on the 7-foot center. Once the ball squirted out, the Raptors were off and running en route to 29 fast-break points and 21 points off turnovers.
"They had that one lineup where everyone was 6'6" and above. They can switch down the line, they deny, deby elbows, and try to make it hard to throw the post to [Embiid]," said Tyrese Maxey. "It's hard. They fly around and they compete extremely hard."
The 76ers will adjust for Friday's rematch and Toronto isn't likely to shooting 43% from three-point range nor rank up 32 assists the next time out. But for questions surrounding how the Raptors would contain Embiid, it turns out the better question may have been how is Philadelphia going to slow down Toronto.
Further Reading
Otto Porter Jr. expected to be 'out for a bit' for personal reasons
Christian Koloko and Pascal Siakam hope facing Joel Embiid inspires children in Cameroon
Precious Achiuwa makes Heat pay as Raptors pull out series split in Miami
