The Toronto Raptors continued their mid-season makeover by parting ways with two-time NBA All-Star and champion Pascal Siakam.
The rebuilding Raptors will send Siakam to the Indiana Pacers in exchange for two guards, one small forward, two 2024 first-round picks, and a protected top-four conditional first-round pick in 2026.
Toronto will receive six-foot-three Bruce Brown Jr. and six-foot-eight forward Jordan Nwora. Additionally, through the New Orleans Pelicans, Toronto will also acquire the rights to six-foot-one point guard Kira Lewis Jr.
Looking to avoid the NBA luxury tax for the season, the Pelicans will receive $110K in cash considerations from Indiana as part of the first trade that acquired Lewis Jr.
The Raptors also freed up roughly $10.2 million in Trade Player Exception (TPE), when comparing Siakam’s ($37.9M) and Precious Achiuwa’s ($4.3M) outgoing contracts with the incoming players, Brown Jr.’s ($22M), Lewis Jr.’s ($5.7M), and Nwora’s ($3M).
A complete journey: Spotted at a basketball camp in Bafia, Cameroon by former NBA player Luc Mbah a Moute, and chosen to attend the 2012 Basketball Without Borders Camp in South Africa, where he first caught the attention of Masai Ujiri.
Siakam departs the Raptors as one of the most exceptional players in franchise history. Drafted by the Raptors with the 27th pick in the 2016 NBA Draft out of New Mexico State, the 29-year-old from Douala played eight seasons for Toronto, totalling 510 games, making 416 starts and scoring 8,875 points.
A top five player on most of the Raptors’ career leaderboards, Siakam averaged 17.4 points per game, 6.5 rebounds, and 3.6 assists. He shot 49% from the field, 32.7% from three-point range, and 77.2% from the free throw line. He also scored a career-high 52 points in a 113-106 win over the New York Knicks.
Fulfilling his father’s wish of having at least one of his four male children play in the NBA, Siakam committed to proving the doubters wrong by playing with purpose and showing improvement each season in a Raptors uniform.
During his rookie season, while assigned to the G League, he played alongside Fred VanVleet for the Raptors 905. He was named the 2017 NBA D-League Finals MVP after leading the team to the championship.
Two years later, he was named the 2018-19 NBA’s Most Improved Player after increasing his scoring numbers from 7.3 to 16.6 points and helping the Raptors win their only NBA championship. The improvements continued, earning himself a spot on two NBA All-Star and All-NBA teams in the last five years.
“Pascal is a champion, an integral part of winning teams and an example of what can be achieved with dedication, perseverance, hard work and tenacity. We’re lucky to have seen Pascal develop into the man and player that he is today – and we are grateful for everything he has done for our city and for our franchise. We wish him all good things.” Raptors Vice-Chairman and President Masai Ujiri said in press release following the trade.
“This is a time of change for our team, and we welcome Bruce, Jordan and Kira to the Raptors and to Toronto. Bruce is a world champion, and we look forward to his two-way play and added toughness on the court. We continue the work of getting better every day, and continue moving forward in our quest to win here in Toronto.”
Addressing the media following the trade, Ujiri got emotional as he reflected on Siakam’s journey from pastoral school to the two African man to winning an NBA championship.
“That guy’s success is my success, no matter where he is.”
The two teams had been discussing the trade for quite some time, but the deal hit a stalemate when Indiana refused to include any of their recently drafted players, including Canadians Bennedict Mathurin, Andrew Nembhard, and 2023 top-ten selection Jarace Walker.
As a Pacer, Siakam will join a rising young core that includes all-star Tyrese Haliburton, sharpshooter Buddy Heild, Miles Turner and two rising Canadians as the Indiana looks to make a potential deep playoff run.
“We’re incredibly excited to welcome Pascal to Indiana,” said President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard. “As a two-time All-NBA selection and two-time NBA All Star, Pascal is a player that our organization has long admired and respected. We feel that his unique offensive skillset will complement our style of play, while his defensive versatility will be a valuable asset to our team.”
Montreal native Chris Boucher remains the lone holder of the 2019 NBA championship team Kawhi Leonard, Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet, O.G Anunoby, Norman Powell, Marc Gasol, Serge Ibaka and Danny Green.
