Pascal Siakam has been selected as a starter for February’s All-Star Game, cementing his rapid rise to the top of the basketball world
For a young man who didn’t actually pick up a basketball until the age of 16 in his native country of Cameroon, it’s safe to say Pascal Siakam made the right decision in pursuing this sport.
In his fourth NBA season after getting picked 27th overall by the Toronto Raptors in the 2016 draft out of New Mexico State, the 25-year-old has emerged this year as Toronto’s star player, putting up career highs across the board, including 23.8 points per night and 7.7 boards.
Siakam has started all 35 of the games he’s featured in this season, missing a handful of contests due to a minor groin injury. He’s enjoyed a steady rise in the association every season since making the jump from college to the professional level.
In his debut season, he played just over 15 minutes per game, averaging 4.2 points per night. Sophomore year, it was 7.3 points while playing 20.7 minutes.
Then in 2018-19, it all clicked. Siakam became a centerpiece of Nick Nurse’s offense en route to an NBA title, playing in 80 games while starting 79 of them. He was now playing just under 31 minutes per contest, while more than doubling his scoring output, dropping 16.9 points per game.
Without a doubt, last year was his breakout season. But it’s what he did in the playoffs which really made people take notice. He started all 24 postseason contests, shooting close to 50 percent from the field while averaging 19 points.
Sure, Kawhi was extremely important to their title in 2019. But without Siakam’s productivity on a nightly basis in the playoffs, they wouldn’t be the defending NBA champions.
Now, Siakam has soared to the moon. He was just named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the third time in his young career and the second time already this season. He is set to make his first All-Star game appearance, as a starter alongside players like Kemba Walker, Giannis Antekekounmpo, fellow countrymen Joel Embiid, and Trae Young.
He’s transformed from a raw talent with size and length to a strong, physical presence who can get to the hoop in a hurry or step back and hit a jumper. It’s evident that Siakam has worked tirelessly at becoming a better shooter as well. Last year, He shot 55 percent from the field, a career-high, and 37 percent from downtown. This season, he’s shooting 80 percent from the line, while averaging 47 percent from field goal range. His 3-point percentage is right around the same as last season, but previously, he shot just 22 percent from downtown. Quite the improvement to say the least.
The point I’m trying to make is that there is no substitute for hard work. Siakam has clearly worked at perfecting his craft over the last few seasons, developing from a lanky kid with potential to an NBA star who is arguably one of the best power forwards in the league on both sides of the ball. He’s a versatile scorer who can sink shots from all over the court or rise above and put defenders on a poster.
Pascal Siakam is the perfect example for kids in Africa that have aspirations to one day play a professional sport, whether it’s basketball or soccer, that anything is possible if you put the work in. If you’re willing to learn and consistently grind day in and day out, there are no limits.
If you asked Siakam right now if he thought he’d be in this position, there is no doubt he would say absolutely. While others may have questioned that he would turn into an NBA star, the 25-year-old continued to believe that he would one day, experience NBA stardom.
He continues to live out his late father’s dream, who passed away in his freshman season at New Mexico State. Siakam’s dad always wanted to see one of his four sons play in the NBA. He’s definitely smiling from above watching Pascal show out on a nightly basis.
Pascal Siakam will continue to be a centerpiece of the Toronto Raptors organization for many years to come and you better believe this will definitely not be his last All-Star Game appearance in what could be a very long and exciting NBA career.