Raptors news: Former All-Star was in Pascal Siakam talks, Summer League star to 905

The Toronto Raptors have not been able to decide on a direction as it pertains to Pascal Siakam. They haven’t shown any inclination to shut down the trade rumors, but they also haven’t pulled the trigger on a deal despite the fact teams have been interested.

The Atlanta Hawks have shown a degree of interest in Siakam, but the extension of Dejounte Murray made it even tougher for them to compensate the Raptors in trade talks adequately. Some top insiders report that a former All-Star forward was in these discussions before a trade elsewhere materialized.

According to Marc Stein and Chris Haynes on the “This League Uncut” podcast, the Hawks included John Collins in Siakam talks prior to their decision to ship him off to the Utah Jazz. Collins’ value was not super high when these trades were going down, as Siakam isn’t going to bring back a haul for Toronto.

Stein and Haynes also hinted that any Siakam trade would involve Toronto accepting pennies on the dollar, as no team is willing to put their best offer on the table for a player who has stated that he is unwilling to sign extensions after being traded. Why give up the farm for a one-year rental?

More Raptors news

• Raptors 905 traded a 2024 first-round draft choice to the Texas Legends (Dallas Mavericks affiliate) in exchange for Summer League standout Mouhamadou Gueye. The former Pitt defensive standout averaged 7.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in five contests (three starts) for the Raptors.
• Raptors two-way signee Markquis Nowell, per Yahoo, sounded willing and able to learn and adapt to the Raptors’ system due to his cerebral style of play. “I’m trying to play chess out there,” Nowell said. “Whatever the defense tries to take away, or tries to force me into, I use it against them. And I use my teammates around me to help use it against them.”

NBA news

• Former Hornets great and Raptors nemesis Kemba Walker appears to have called time on his NBA career, going over to Europe by joining AS Monaco. Walker’s prime was cut short by an ill-fated stint with the Celtics, proceeding some severe injury problems at the tail end of the deal.
• Even though Nerlens Noel continues to see his scoring drop, his rebounding and shot-blocking were enough to convince the Sacramento Kings to sign him as a backup big man via a one-year deal.