Raptors: Fred VanVleet shuts up Pascal Siakam haters after return

Fred VanVleet and the Toronto Raptors might not have been able to come out on top against the Brooklyn Nets in their Sunday afternoon matinee, but that did little to douse the excitement that came about when Pascal Siakam made his long-awaited return. Even with his minutes restriction, Siakam looked like the star Raptors fans know he can be.

Siakam recorded 15 points and four rebounds in 25 minutes against one of the best teams in the league. While some substandard performances in the Disney bubble and some iffy play at times last year made him a frequent target of mockery online, even a basic examination of his game proves that he is quite simply an elite talent.

VanVleet and Siakam were both integral members of the 2019 championship team, so if anyone can attest to Pascal’s quality as a basketball player, it’s No. 23. After Siakam’s regular-season debut, VanVleet managed to get in one little jab at those who question Siakam’s talent.

VanVleet said that Siakam returning from his injury and playing well should serve as “a reminder to the idiots on Twitter who have beat him up for the past two years.” The fact that a player who is as skilled as Siakam on both ends of the floor and already has a ring under his belt gets slandered the way he does is baffling.

Toronto Raptors star Fred VanVleet knows how good Pascal Siakam is.

When looking at his 2021 season, let’s take into account the fact that he was practicing in a hotel ballroom over 1,000 miles away from his usual basketball home. With an injured team around him and his struggles with COVID-19, the fact that his scoring dipped slightly shouldn’t be alarming.

He was just as effective as he usually is on the defensive end, put up almost identical rebounding numbers, and had new personal best marks in assists and steals per game.

Even though it was his first game back with the Raptors and their new-look lineup, he looked like he’d been playing with Scottie Barnes and the rest of the squad for months, as he was already making sharp passes creating for himself on offense.

During Siakam’s absence, Gary Trent Jr. become an elite defender, OG Anunoby made leaps on the offensive end, and Barnes put himself right at the forefront of the Rookie of the Year race. While this team will have to figure out the best way to distribute shots, it appears as though Siakam’s star power will allow him to seamlessly fit in with this group.

Pascal Siakam is a truly elite player that can positively impact the game in multiple ways, and anyone taking the contrarian viewpoint is either lying or incapable of analyzing basketball. VanVleet knows what Siakam brings to the table, and he sounded pumped up to get him back in the lineup.