Getty Pascal Siakam of the Toronto Raptors, holds follow-through against the Golden State Warriors.
There have already been plenty of moves surrounding the Golden State Warriors roster this summer. The Dubs offloaded Jordan Poole in a trade for Chris Paul last month, then followed it up with signings like Cory Joseph and Dario Saric.
In the instance that the Warriors aren’t done making moves, Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley cooked up some mocks trades in a recent article. One of the three that Buckley proposed sees Golden State land All-NBA forward Pascal Siakam in a deal with the Toronto Raptors.
Golden State Warriors receive: F Pascal Siakam
Toronto Raptors receive: G Chris Paul, G Moses Moody, F Jonathan Kuminga, 2030 first-round pick
Does a Raptors-Warriors Pascal Siakam Trade Make Sense?
Believe it or not, this a deal that actually makes sense for both sides. The Raptors are in this weird position where they don’t seem to be sure if they want to be good or not. They just lost Fred VanVleet in free agency to the Houston Rockets — after failing to qualify for the playoffs last year. They haven’t made any substantial moves to improve, leaving the question of whether or not to enter a rebuild.
If they were to decide to do so, offloading the 29-year-old forward would be the first step. Siakam is entering the final year of his contract with Toronto, which could cause some uncertainty in regards to his future if the team isn’t going to be able to compete.
Golden State swooping in to add Siakam to their roster as they push to win another title makes a ton of sense. Especially for the price that Buckley lays out. Paul is a 38-year-old undersized point guard, whose spot in the rotation is already heavily questionable. Both Moody and Kuminga would be seen as valuable chips to a rebuilding Raptors team. Both under the age of 21, the pair of young standouts have each yet to get a real chance to shine in The Bay.
In return for three pieces that don’t necessarily fit into Golden State’s lineup, they’d be getting a 24.2 point scorer. Siakam appeared in 71 games for Toronto last year, playing about 37.4 minutes each time. Aside from putting the ball in the basket, his impact was also felt with 7.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game.
Mike Dunleavy Jr. Reveals Warriors’ Plans for Remainder of Offseason
Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy Jr. shared some insight in regards to the team’s plans for the remainder of the offseason, earlier this week. He told reporters that he and the front office are still hoping to add a player with size — but also with some skill.
“I think we’re going to add somebody with some size, but we have to be careful with the way we play, the way the league works,” Dunleavy said on July 10, per the Golden State Warriors official YouTube channel. “Just bringing in somebody that’s tall — you have to be skilled, you have to know how to play. I think we’ve learned that over the past few years. So we’ll always prioritize that but the taller and longer a player is, the better.”
Dunleavy — of course — was talking about free agency. However, Siakam and his six-foot nine-inch frame fit the bill of a “skilled big.”