Getty Pascal Siakam #43 of the Toronto Raptors dribbles the ball while being guarded by Myles Turner #33 of the Indiana Pacers.
The Indiana Pacers have jumped ahead of the Golden State Warriors in the Pascal Siakam sweepstakes.
According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the Raptors and Pacers are actively engaged in trade talks.
“The Raptors have been engaged in discussions with several teams on a potential Siakam deal, but conversations with the Pacers have gained steam in recent days, those sources say. Sources briefed on the talks between the two teams say that there have been several back-and-forth proposals made. While the two sides have been described as being far along in the process, according to those sources, they have yet to finalize or agree to a deal,” Charania wrote with Sam Amick on January 16.
The centerpiece of the proposed deal is three first-round draft picks and matching salaries which includes Bruce Brown Jr. going to Toronto for Siakam.
That’s tough to beat for the Warriors, who had previously discussed a potential deal with the Raptors.
“The Kings had been among other suitors for Siakam, but decided to pull out of conversations in recent weeks, league sources say. Siakam is also known to be against the potential prospect of re-signing in Sacramento, making a Kings deal even more problematic. The Warriors and Mavericks have expressed exploratory interest in Siakam as well, according to league sources,” The Athletic report added.
Warriors Best Offer for Pascal Siakam
Unless the Warriors are willing to give up Jonathan Kuminga, whom the Raptors highly value, they cannot compete with Pacers’ offer.
According to Bleacher Report’s Eric Pincus, the Warriors package could potentially include Chris Paul with Kuminga and Moses Moody.
“The buzz all year has the Warriors minding their budget, but the team is struggling and still wants to keep the Steph Curry era competitive,” Pincus wrote on January 16.
“With Chris Paul’s expiring contract (technically $30 million non-guaranteed for 2024-25) and pieces like Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, the Warriors could make a credible run at Siakam.”
Draymond Green’s Return
Draymond Green returned on a minutes restriction and came off the bench. But despite his solid play in limited playing time, the Warriors still lost to a skeleton Memphis Grizzlies team that is missing four of their starters, including their top player Ja Morant, 116-107 on Martin Luther King Day.
Green was solid off the bench — seven points, seven rebounds and four assists in 24 minutes — in his first game since his indefinite suspension for striking Phoenix center Jusurf Nurkic in the face on December 12 went for naught.
“Draymond played well,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said after the loss. “He played hard. It’s good to have him back. Obviously, as a team, we didn’t play well but Draymond competed and [it’s] good to get him back in the fold.”
A dejected Green called out the whole Warriors team for their poor defense.
“You just gotta have pride in yourself as a man that I’m not gonna let my guy score,” Green told reporters after the loss. “Our closeouts [were] too soft. Our rotations were too slow. So there’s just no pride. Until every guy takes pride in themselves, and wants to stop the guy in front of him, we’ll suck.”
“We can’t guard nobody. So until we guard we’ll lose.”