3 Raptors who deserve to have statues built outside of Scotiabank Arena

Serge Ibaka, Kyle Lowry, Kawhi Leonard, Pascal Siakam and Marc Gasol, Toronto Raptors
Serge Ibaka, Kyle Lowry, Kawhi Leonard, Pascal Siakam and Marc Gasol, Toronto Raptors / Mitchell Leff/GettyImages
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 4
Next

No. 3: Pascal Siakam deserves a statue

We land on the most controversial entrant on this list, that of Pascal Siakam. On the surface the idea of Siakam being ranked above players like Chris Bosh or DeMar DeRozan may seem insane, but looking beneath the surface it makes a lot more sense than you may think.

Who has the most All-NBA selections in franchise history? The answer is a three-way tie between Vince Carter, DeRozan...and Pascal Siakam. Each of those players made two All-NBA teams during their Toronto careers. And of the three, Siakam is the only one to win a championship in Toronto.

It's the two-way impact for Siakam that is so impactful. He started as a raw rookie selected late in the first round as a defensive specialist, then continued to add offensive skills until he was the Raptors' best player over his final few seasons in Toronto. He also didn't have a messy breakup with the team; he was interested in staying with the Raptors but they moved him to a better team as they entered their rebuild phase.

Of star players in Raptors history, Siakam ranks second to only Kyle Lowry in career playoff games with 53, and he is Top-5 in nearly every playoff statistical category. He was a key player in their run to the title in 2019, and he has only accrued substantial statistical accomplishments since then.

Siakam probably didn't hit the level of stardom required for a statue, nor was he a Toronto-lifer. But when you stack up his resume against the other great Raptors, it's hard to deny that he deserves a strong level of recognition.

Next. 10 Toronto Raptors who turned their back on the franchise. 10 Toronto Raptors who turned their back on the franchise. dark