Champion coach-turned-ESPN analyst Doc Rivers identified Pascal Siakam as the perfect trade target for the Golden State Warriors that can bring them back to the title conversation.
The Warriors saw what Siakam could do for the nth time when he dropped 16 points on an efficient 7-of-11 shooting with six rebounds, six assists against only one turnover, and two blocks in the Raptors’ rousing 133-118 win at Chase Center on January 7.
The question facing the Warriors as the February 8 trade deadline approaches, according to Rovers, can they make such a trade and whoever that is, “can he fit in time?”
“I think [Pascal] Siakam fits anywhere,” Rivers said on the January 10 episode of “The Bill Simmons” podcast. “He’s just a hard-playing dude, will defend, gives them length and athleticism, inconsistent shooter but shoots it well enough. He gets to the foul line. So he solves a lot of their issues.”
Siakam leads the Raptors in scoring averaging 22.2 points per game with 6.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists on a contract year. Toronto is shopping him around to avoid losing him without anything in return as they did with Fred VanVleet.
The Sacramento Kings, Warriors’ conference rival, pulled out of trade talks on January 5, leaving the door open for Golden State.
Warriors Keep Jonathan Kuminga off the Table
The Warriors are reluctant to offer Jonathan Kuminga to the Raptors in a potential Siakam trade, according to Sportsnet Canada’s Michael Grange.
“Still, according to multiple sources, the Warriors are loathe to trade Kuminga, who is seen as a potential star who can help them win now and in the future, the rare piece on the roster who can help Golden State both support Steph Curry in the present and transition to a successful post-Curry future, should it ever come,” Grange wrote on January 6.
“And a not insignificant detail is that Kuminga is said to have a very close relationship with Warriors owner Joe Lacob who has historically been reluctant to part with any of the young talent that represents the Warriors’ so-called ‘two-timelines’ strategy of meshing a group of young draftees with their established championship core,” Grange wrote.
NBC Sports’ Monte Poole substantiated Grange’s report.
“When Kuminga was benched for the final 18 minutes last Thursday as the Denver Nuggets erased an 18-point deficit to beat the Warriors at the buzzer, Lacob did something unusual. He came to [Steve] Kerr’s postgame news conference.
The CEO wanted to hear Kerr’s responses, with reason to be particularly curious regarding Kuminga. The days since have been intriguing, with Kuminga’s frustration spilling out, leading to a conversation with Kerr, resulting in increased minutes on Friday,” Poole wrote on January 7.
The Fallout of Draymond Green’s Return
Draymond Green‘s return from his 12-game suspension means a “roster logjam” again as Kerr would like to put it.
In Green’s absence, Kuminga was in the starting five.
Against the Raptors, Kerr played Kuminga and Andrew Wiggins, perhaps for the final time. The pairing backfired as the Raptors destroyed them in their minutes together.
With Chris Paul sidelined by a fractured hand until after the All-Star break, the logical move is to bring Green back in the starting lineup for additional playmaking and play his usual defensive anchor role.
A frontcourt of Kuminga, Green and rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis could give Kerr a potent defensive lineup with enough playmaking to surround Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson.
