Siakam status unknown after Raptors star suffers another groin injury
Pascal Siakam is on the shelf.
The Toronto Raptors forward left Friday’s 111-110 loss to the Dallas Mavericks after sustaining a strained right groin, according to the team.
Siakam, one of the NBA’s early-season standouts, slipped at the top of the three-point line while handling the ball and needed help off the court during a timeout.
“He slipped there,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse told media postgame. “Looks like it’s something in the groin. We’ll get the imaging and stuff done.”
Pascal Siakam will not return tonight vs. Mavs due to a strained right groin. pic.twitter.com/GeENMhh0h8
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) November 5, 2022
The Raptors are already without Fred VanVleet because of lower-back stiffness.
“Well, I mean, you don’t really have much choice other than to keep playing, and you’ve got to believe you’re still going to get it done,” Nurse said. “Things just shift, right? You lose a couple of your main creators and shot-takers, and that stuff just shifts to other guys, and it kind of did there for a stretch.
“I thought O.G., and Scottie, and Gary kind of stepped up when Pascal went out, and that’s how you’ve got to look at it. You’ve just got to go.
“Nobody is going to feel sorry for you. When you’re losing players, you’ve got to keep playing.”
Pascal Siakam is doubtful for tomorrow for the #Raptors with a groin strain.
— Adam Laskaris (@adam_la2karis) November 5, 2022
Siakam has missed time because of a bad groin before.
The 28-year-old was sidelined for nearly three weeks, missing 11 games, with a groin injury in 2019-20. He also played through groin discomfort in the 2020-21 season.
Siakam has been on fire to start the 2022-23 effort, averaging 25.6 points, 9.6 rebounds and 7.9 assists through eight games.
“He’s been leading us the whole year, so obviously, we wanted to play hard,” teammate Chris Boucher said after the loss. “We missed him out there as our leader. The mentality is still the same. When you get the chance to play, go hard, play hard.
“We can’t replace Pascal with one person. It has to be collectively. This is something that we need to focus on. Hopefully, he’s not out for a while because we do need him.”