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“Why not continue to get better?”: Raptors' Siakam still has room to grow

Adam Laskaris
Adam Laskaris
|
Nov 29 2022, 5:18 pm
“Why not continue to get better?”: Raptors' Siakam still has room to grow
John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

Through the first few weeks of the NBA calendar, Toronto Raptors forward Pascal Siakam was well on the way to having a career year this season.

Stating before the season his interest in becoming a top-five player in the league, Siakam was receiving MVP chants on a near-nightly basis from the Scotiabank Arena faithful.

After a summer where his workout clips seemingly went viral once a week, Siakam’s effort levels after an All-NBA campaign last year looked destined to see him reach even higher levels this season.

But a freak groin injury suffered on November 4 against the Mavericks, where he slipped on a wet spot on the floor, had sidelined the star forward for a little over three weeks.

In his return game last night, Siakam had a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds against the Cavaliers, a 100-88 win for the Raptors.

It wasn’t an eye-popping performance by any means on the stat sheet due to his standards, but it doesn’t mean it was short of highlights, including a sweet one-touch pass to O.G. Anunoby for a dunk in the fourth quarter.

“Why not continue to get better?” he told reporters last night when asked if he still had room to grow. “When I’m done with my career, I want to sit back and be like man, I did everything that I could… I’ll sleep happy knowing I did that.”

Siakam has averaged 24.1 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 7.4 assists in 10 games this season, all of which are career highs.

“I just want to continue to evolve as a player. I wanna be the best that I can be,” Siakam added. “Sometimes, it’s not just wanting that, but also putting in the work to do that and I do that every day.”

“Felt good to be out there, man. I missed this,” Siakam said in a clip published via the Raptors’ Open Gym show.

And it’s clear that his teammates are having just as much fun as he is out there.

“I love watching Pascal play,” Scottie Barnes said last night. “It’s like, ‘Wow, damn!’ Every move he makes, the step-backs, the spin moves, the double spin moves. You know it’s coming, but still, bang!”

Siakam and the Raptors hit the road for a two-game swing on Wednesday and Friday against the Pelicans and Nets, before heading back home Saturday night to play against the Magic.

One can only wonder what kind of tricks Siakam has in his bag over the next week.

Adam LaskarisAdam Laskaris
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