Hawks Got A Close Look at Pascal Siakam's Stardom As Trade Season Nears for Raptors
NBA schedule makers sure know how to generate drama and intrigue.
Why else would the Toronto Raptors be playing a strange two-game set against the Atlanta Hawks just days before trade chatter is expected to pick up Friday? For months now, the Hawks have been the team to watch in trade talks involving Pascal Siakam. They reportedly made a serious offer for the All-Star forward in the summer and have remained interested in acquiring Siakam should Toronto ever actually make him available.
It was only fitting Wednesday turned into the Pascal Siakam show. The 6-foot-8 forward showcased his entire repertoire of skills and then some in a 135-128 victory over the Hawks. He carried Toronto the whole night until the Raptors finally clamped down on defense in the final minutes of regulation and iced the game at the other end.
A pair of Jakob Poeltl blocks forced the late stops the Raptors needed and an emphatic poster-worthy dunk by OG Anunoby followed by a nifty layup through contact from Scottie Barnes gave Toronto breathing room. Moments later Dennis Schröder nailed a mid-range jumper to put the Raptors up 11 and keep the Hawks at bay.
All night, though, Atlanta had no answer for Siakam who led Toronto with 33 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. He got into the paint with ease against Atlanta’s wings Wesley Matthews and Saddiq Bey and used his speed to beat Clint Capela and Onyeka Okongwu to the hoop.
Not that Atlanta needs more three-point shooting, but it certainly didn’t hurt that Siakam caught fire from behind the arc, nailing four of his five three-point attempts in the first half. He helped Toronto climb out of a double-digit deficit in the first half, somehow trading buckets with Trae Young on the other side.
Toronto’s problem once again was the defense most of the night. Part of it was Schröder’s inability to stay in front of Young at the point of attack, but throughout the lineup Atlanta had success. The Hawks shot 11-for-21 from behind the arc in the first half, tallying 66 points before the break.
Young picked apart the Raptors with the pick-and-roll, forcing Toronto into awkward switches at times or just extending the tiniest advantages into easy looks. He had 20 points and 10 assists in the first half alone, leading Atlanta for the night with 35 and 17.
It wasn’t hard to see why Young and the Hawks would be interested in acquiring someone like Siakam, especially with De’Andre Hunter and Jalen Johnson, Atlanta’s two starting forwards, sidelined with injuries. The Hawks are almost the inverse of Toronto roster wise. They’re a team with a pair of talented guards, a fine center rotation, and little in terms of wing depth. It’s the one glaring hole on a team that should be pretty OK everywhere else.
“We’re not a big team across the front line,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said pre-game. “We’ve got to address that collectively.”
For the Raptors, it was only a shame that Hunter and AJ Griffin, the two players reportedly involved in that Hawks offer from this past summer, were both sidelined and unable to be on showcase in Toronto.
Of course, Siakam wasn’t the only one to showcase his talent as trade rumors swirled. Gary Trent Jr. helped lead Toronto’s comeback in the third quarter, nailing a trio of three-pointers in the frame as the Raptors dropped a 39-point quarter on Atlanta. Somehow the Raptors hit 18 three-pointers against Atlanta, climbing ahead by as many as 11 in the third thanks to their three-point barrage.
"He is amazing shooter. I want him to shoot the ball even more," Raptors coach Darko Rajaković said. "If Gary Trent goes out there and he misses wide open shots I don't have any problem sleeping at night win or lose. So I have absolute confidence in him and I'm glad that he was able to help us tonight in play well."
Anunoby too showed his value with a 22-point performance on 10-for-13 shooting for Toronto.
As for Schröder, he didn’t exactly have a revenge game against his former team, but the 30-year-old nailed a three-pointer mid-way through the third quarter to score his 10,000th career point.
"Dennis just keeps pushing the envelope. He's an established player in this league. World recognized MVP of the World Cup. He just continues to help us in so many ways," Rajaković said. "It’s a really, really good accomplishment for him for 10,000 points."
Barnes, meanwhile, had 27 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists, the kind of performance that is increasingly becoming commonplace for the burgeoning Raptors star.
This season has only shown that both these teams have been less than the sum of their parts. A team led by Young shouldn’t be as bad as Atlanta has been and Toronto’s roster on paper has more talent than what their record this season has suggested. And yet, their records dating back to last year suggest their mediocre and maybe on a collision course for a shakeup deal this year to simply try something different.
Up Next: Atlanta Hawks
The Raptors will be right back at it Friday night with another game against the Hawks at 7:30 p.m. ET.
