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Pascal Siakam Rumors
All NBA Players
Position: F
Born: 04/02/94
Height: 6-9 / 2.06
Weight:230 lbs. / 104.3 kg.
Salary: $2,351,838
Born: 04/02/94
Height: 6-9 / 2.06
Weight:230 lbs. / 104.3 kg.
Salary: $2,351,838
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Siakam — the NBA’s most improved player in 2019 — was out in L.A. when we asked about The Klaw bailing on the 6 right after he helped win them a title … and he’s not sweatin’ it one bit. “We’re still the champs right now, so I’m still enjoying that,” Siakam said. “Imma figure out next season, next season.” The 25-year-old is coming off a breakout year for the Dinos … and even being the center of trade talks ain’t bothering Siakam. “It’s the NBA … sh*t happens. It’s the NBA. It’s a business.”
The showdown concluded Friday night, with the league’s balance of power at stake. The Raptors engaged with Oklahoma City in trade talks, though not at the highest levels. Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook was believed to be interested in playing with Kawhi, but sources say he was never discussed in talks with the Raptors. And even then, the ask for George was astronomical: Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet and four unprotected first-round picks, before they even started matching up salaries to account for George’s higher number. Perhaps that would have been where Westbrook came in, but not likely.
Mintz worked with a stunned Presti to find a fair solution for both sides, a source said. The Thunder then engaged in talks with the Clippers and Raptors, the two teams Leonard was open to playing for. (A source told The Undefeated early last week that there was “no way” Leonard was going to sign as a free agent with James, Davis and the Lakers despite speculation they were the front-runners.) Although the Thunder were interested in Raptors forward Pascal Siakam, the 2019 NBA Most Improved Player, sources said the champs weren’t so willing to give him up. The Clippers, meanwhile, had draft picks and interesting talent to offer.
Bruce Arthur: Updated: Oklahoma City asked for Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet, and four unprotected first-round picks as a starting point for Paul George. The Raptors believed they were being used as leverage, and believed Kawhi finally, truly wanted LA. And then he left.
Clippers leadership — Ballmer, Frank and general manager Michael Winger — harbored fears that Presti was close to striking a deal with Toronto that would have delivered George to Leonard and the NBA champions, sources said. Had Presti been able to strike a deal for George with Toronto — and Leonard was willing to stay — George was believed to be willing to join the Raptors, sources said. Presti pursued a package of Russell Westbrook and George to the Raptors — with the NBA’s Most Improved Player, forward Pascal Siakam, as the centerpiece of a broader, asset-crippling deal — but Ujiri couldn’t keep up with the Clippers’ willingness to unload unprotected first-round picks into the middle of the next decade, league sources said. Simply, Toronto didn’t have the depth of picks it needed to get a deal done — nor the certainty that getting George would make Leonard stay with the Raptors, sources said.
