NBA Trade Rumors: 7 stars who could request a trade next
By Kyle McKee
NBA stars that could request a trade next: Pascal Siakam
This next one’s kind of out of left field but just hear me out. Do I think Pascal Siakam could request a trade? Yeah, sure of course he can. However, I think it’s more likely that Masai Ujiri and Toronto’s front office just deal with Siakam mid-way through the season without a peep coming from Siakam himself.
Just looking at the Raptors roster and comparing it to the rest of the Eastern Conference, they are definitely in the bottom half of the East when discussing talent. Considering teams like the Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls, Charlotte Hornets, Indiana Pacers, and New York Knicks all improved their rosters this past offseason, it’s hard to imagine the Raptors being a playoff team.
Having said that, the Raptors do have one of the best coaching and developmental staffs in the NBA, led by Head coach Nick Nurse so it wouldn’t be that surprising if Toronto is in the playoff mix in March. To me though, it’s more likely that the Reports decide halfway through the season that a re-build is the best way forward for the franchise. What better way to start a rebuild than trading away your best player: Pascal Siakam.
The Raptors have some nice young pieces in Scottie Barnes, Gary Trent Jr., OG Anunoby, Fred VanVleet, Chris Boucher, and the recently acquired Precious Achiuwa. It makes sense to me that the front office would want to spend this year developing their young guys. I could definitely see Siakam along with Goran Dragic on the trading block around the deadline.