Everything Pascal Siakam

[SkywalkerAC]

Pascal deserves his own thread as well. For a 27th pick, it's incredible that we can basically pencil him in for significant production with the 2nd unit this year. He's one of the best open court rim runners in the league, has a motor that won't quit, and comes across as a first class teammate/young man. The big question is whether he can be an impact defender in just his 2nd season.

He doesn't get enough talk.

[SkywalkerAC]

Remember when all we wanted was for the team to pass the ball and not have DeMar in iso's all the time? Well we get our wish now out of necessity. Gasol will have more room to find open players with Kawhi gone so fingers crossed the movement will be fluid.

Yup, and it could go pretty well, in the regular season especially. Then, in crunch time/playoffs, high pick and roll is still a thing that is hard to defend.

[LJ2]

Remember when all we wanted was for the team to pass the ball and not have DeMar in iso's all the time? Well we get our wish now out of necessity. Gasol will have more room to find open players with Kawhi gone so fingers crossed the movement will be fluid.

[Puffer]

...Or is it just such that Kawhi is unique in his own way. Maybe I've answered my own question here, Pascal's just not the same iso scorer Kawhi is? But then, maybe he could get closer.

Kawhi's offense has a very high gravity. To stop him required a very special defender, on a good day, or multiple defenders. Even then, Kawhi has the strength and body control to make the basket. Pascal doesn't presently have that kind of strength or control. He was effectively shut down in several games during the playoffs, typically by double teams when Kawhi was off the floor. If Pascal's assists go up, because he has learned to see those double teams forming and has learned to make the pass as soon as a teammate is open, he gets more opportunities to score one on one, which he can do pretty effectively. He moves towards having that higher gravity, drawing double teams more frequently, giving him the opportunity for increased assists (Raptors continue scoring when he is double teamed). This all helps compensate for the loss of Kawhi.

It is the same reasoning for him to improve his midrange shot. Other teams are giving him those shots because they don't mind giving up the inefficient midrange two attempt as opposed to an at the basket two plus a foul shot or an outside three pointer. If his efficiency in the midrange goes up, then he starts pulling defenders closer to him, leaving a man open somewhere for an easy three or dunk.

I have finally conceded the importance of effective field goal % and the nuanced game of where each player takes their shots and how the coach gets each player to take shots from "their spots."

[NeedTristanThompson]

What's the likelihood that Pascal can average 5-6 assists a game this season? I think he needs to focus on facilitation and his midrange shots to have (and for the team to have) success. Nurse could start the season out pushing the transition game, but that is relatively easily scouted and prepped for. If one or two trailers are always pacing Pascal's runs down the court there will be some easy baskets for the trailers initially. I would expect the Raptors to automatically position two guys in the corner every time Siakim makes a move to the basket. That is going to be harder to defend if he begins the season getting assists.

I hope one or two of the new guys become dependable from 3. Could change the whole season for the Raptors if they can manage to have three shooters on the floor with Siakim all the time.

So I'm still working on educating myself on the game here. Buuuuuuuut Kawhi Leonard was successful and our number one option last year while only averaging 3.3 assists for the regular season. Why does Pascal need more?! He's not the same guy Kawhi is, buuuut if he's going to be the number one guy - is simply increasing his one on one scoring efficiency an option, or even a remote possibility? Or is it just such that Kawhi is unique in his own way. Maybe I've answered my own question here, Pascal's just not the same iso scorer Kawhi is? But then, maybe he could get closer.

[NeedTristanThompson]

http://forums.raptorsrepublic.com/sh...-Pascal-Siakam

Ha, merge please

Sooooooooooooooo where's that merger!

[GOLDBLUM]

[golden]

im not concerned on a massive drop off from last year to this year.

Yeah, Gasol already dropped when he moved from Memphis to Toronto..... his USG went from 22 to 16%. If anything, we should expect a rebound season.

[TrueTorontoFan]

I'm far more concerned about Marc Gasol, at 35 years old, maintaining enough foot speed to defend out to the perimeter than I am about him dropping 30.

Having a centre who could both shut down Embiid in the post and hedge/trap Steph on the perimeter was huge. That was the one key thing JV couldn't do.

im not concerned on a massive drop off from last year to this year.

[TrueTorontoFan]

Gasol was also awful in Memphis last year in post ups. He's not a scorer. Using him that way will hurt us.

High post passer, set up man for handoff plays, pick and pop option. That's his game. Will be interesting to see if Siakam can develop a PnR ball handler game so we can run that action without Lowry in the game.

i don't think we used him in pick and pop action enough honestly.

[LJ2]

I'm going to say <15% chance. He'd have to be commanding a lot of attention from the defense like Giannis in order to find open guys while barrelling into the lane. On the flip side he would also need guys that can hit shots like Giannis had last season.

[Puffer]

What's the likelihood that Pascal can average 5-6 assists a game this season? I think he needs to focus on facilitation and his midrange shots to have (and for the team to have) success. Nurse could start the season out pushing the transition game, but that is relatively easily scouted and prepped for. If one or two trailers are always pacing Pascal's runs down the court there will be some easy baskets for the trailers initially. I would expect the Raptors to automatically position two guys in the corner every time Siakim makes a move to the basket. That is going to be harder to defend if he begins the season getting assists.

I hope one or two of the new guys become dependable from 3. Could change the whole season for the Raptors if they can manage to have three shooters on the floor with Siakim all the time.

[S.R.]

I'm far more concerned about Marc Gasol, at 35 years old, maintaining enough foot speed to defend out to the perimeter than I am about him dropping 30.

Having a centre who could both shut down Embiid in the post and hedge/trap Steph on the perimeter was huge. That was the one key thing JV couldn't do.

[Quirk]

The eye test is impossible for Dan because he doesn’t even have eyes. He’s connected to his computer by a cable and he views basketball in statistics and code.

No. That's me.

[grindhouse]

I dunno, man. Even the eyetest reveals something like half of Gasol's post-ups end up as fadeaways or awkward looking 'sling' hook shots. Anything that should be a dunk or layup for a lot of NBA big men, gets blocked. His vertical can't be more than a foot or so.

all he has to be at his age is a threat, he absolutely can put up 30 in the right offence. But that 30 will not be consistent. But the threat that he can do it will open things up. OG is really the X factor here. Is there tape with him playing with gasol? I don’t think he can put the ball on the floor but if he plays like iggy he can become a threat.